Insanity Mixed With Reality
by Ms-NekoGirl-98
Summary: Sora sees things that other people can't. He sees creatures with black bodies and yellow eyes and two guys who won't leave him alone, Vanitas and Remnant. Soon, he gets sent to a special school for troubled teens and meets Riku and Roxas who have their own problems. Add Repliku and Ventus into the mix and then you've got an epic story! Eventual SoRiku, VanVen, AkuRoku, small SoRoku
1. Destined Meeting

**Insanity Mixed With Reality**

**SoRiku, VanVen, SoRoku, AkuRoku (?)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or Final Fantasy. It would be cool if I did though.**

**Summary: Sora sees things that other people can't. He sees creatures with black bodies and yellow eyes and two guys who won't leave him alone, Vanitas and Remnant. Soon, he gets sent to a special school for troubled teens and meets Riku and Roxas who have their own problems. Add Repliku and Ventus into the mix and then you've got an epic story!**

**And no, Remnant is not one of my characters. Look up Remnant Vanitas. None of them are my characters.**

**AC: An idea I got from seeing this video on YouTube- **

**[KHxVOCALOID] Hatsune Miku-Dummy dummy sub espaÃ±ol**

**Not sure why I got this idea for a story from it but I did. Please read and enjoy! Leaving a comment might make me want to write more. You can comment even if you don't have a profile on here.**

"**Speech" **_**'Thoughts' **_**'Speech of the illusions (Van, Rem, Rep, etc)'**

**WARNINGS 4 chapter: Slight swearing from Vanitas, not much though.**

**Chapter 1: Destined Meeting**

He had started seeing things the night of his tenth birthday. A shadowy shape in the mirror and little black creatures with yellow eyes. The doctor said that these illusions were caused by mere stress and tricks of the eyes but Sora knew that it wasn't. These things that he could see, they were real and they scared him to no end.

The shadow in the mirror soon formed into a person that looked like the opposite of who Sora was and he acted different too. Instead of chestnut brown hair he had raven black and instead of sapphire eyes he had golden. Even their skin tones were different.

The dark haired boy was known by the name Vanitas, he had given himself that name one night when he decided to harass the poor brunet with words. He only ever appeared in mirrors and the Hikari household was full of them so there was no escape from him.

Soon, everyone, including Sora's own family thought that he was crazy. Kids at school thought the same thing and they bullied him and kept away from him. It didn't help when another person popped up in the mirrors. This other person looked like both Sora and Vanitas but he had white hair and green eyes. The guy called himself Remnant.

Strange how these illusions could name themselves…

Once Sora turned fifteen he was sent to a boarding school named Oblivion Institute for Troubled Teens. But was Sora really a troubled teen? He wasn't or at least, he didn't consider himself to be. Maybe if Vanitas and Remnant left him alone then he would be fine and the other creatures that kept appearing too, they never appeared in the mirrors though, only the darkness. If Sora stayed someone light then they wouldn't come near and Van and Rem seemed to be confined in only the mirrors and occasionally the windows or surface of water. They could only appear in places with reflections.

'_Tomorrow is the day that I'm going to leave to go to that stupid school for insane people.' _The brunet thought as he entered his room and flopped on the bed. His room had a night-light in every power socket to keep the creatures away that he had named the Heartless. He knew that some were lurking under his bed since the light didn't reach there. They didn't make much noise though, even if he would be the only one who could hear it. All that he heard was faint scratching noises they made with their sharp claws. He often wondered what would happen if he let one get close, would it injure him? Nah, apparently illusions can't hurt you if they are imaginary. Sora doubted that they were though, how could he make Vanitas and Remnant up? They were too twisted to be imaginary _friends _of his.

'Soraaaa, we're bored, entertain us.' Rem's voice rang out through the room.

Speaking of the devils.

The brunet sat up on his bed and passed by the large mirror in his room where both Vanitas and Remnant stood. He didn't look at them as he walked past but he had a feeling that they were looking at him. It was better to ignore them but then again, they didn't like being ignored and they got annoying when they were trying to get some attention.

Sora closed his door so if he did end up speaking to the 'illusions' then his family wouldn't hear. Next, he walked over to his dresser and got out some clothes to pack. Tomorrow was going to be a very long day and hopefully there weren't going to be any mirrors.

Once he packed everything that he would need in a bag he started running his fingers along the points of the crown pendant that hung on a chain around his neck. He always wore it, ever since he was child. He had gotten it when he turned ten from a distant relative of his and he had not taken it off a day since, he even wore it in the shower since it never rusted from water or anything like that.

'Nervous? You should be, brat. I can't wait until we get to that new school, it's better than this shitty room and that craptastic catholic school we went to before.' Vanitas said.

The two could pretty much tell what Sora was feeling just by his actions, facial expressions and eyes.

Sora always wondered what would happen if he broke a mirror that the two were in. He hoped that it would get rid of them but then again, they didn't seem that easy to make disappear. Smashing a mirror wouldn't do the brunet any good though, all he would end up doing would be making his hands bleed and piss off his family for breaking furniture.

"You two, why can only I see you?" Sora suddenly asked, now brave enough to ask the question that had been troubling him for years.

His azure eyes flickered to the mirror where the two males stood. Vanitas on the left in a black suit and Remnant on the right in a white suit. They could change what they wore, something that Sora also wanted to know about but now wasn't the time to ask about their appearance.

Vanitas and Remnant looked at each-other for a second, both smirking.

'Because you're going insane.' They both said, in synch.

"No I'm not!" Sora snapped. He hardly ever got angry, even with these two goons.

The two seemed a little surprised but they knew how to handle Sora, they had been with him for a while after-all so they knew how to get under his skin. "Both of you, I hate you guys so much! You're trying to make me believe that I'm crazy but I know that I'm not! Maybe I should just run away and go somewhere with no reflections at all! Even if that means avoiding water, I'll do it because you two are only good for tormenting people! Just leave me alone and go find someone else to toy with!"

Even someone like Sora could finally crack under all the stress and the constant bullying of the illusions.

Without another word, Sora opened his door and left his room. He needed to go on a walk to cool down.

He exited the house, after telling his parents that he needed some air, and he walked out into the night. It was barely after sunset but he didn't care, even if some of the Heartless were starting to pop up and tag along.

Back in the mirror in Sora's room, the two males were thinking about what the brunet had said.

'Do you think he will do it?' Rem asked, not knowing Sora as well as the other since he only came a few years after Vanitas did.

'No, he's too soft.' The dark-haired teen replied. 'But we can't take any risks, he's our only chance to become real. The last Wayfinder failed for me, he was a stupid fool for killing himself before I became whole. This time, we need to get the Wayfinder on our side.'

Wayfinders were people who could see a selected few souls and some were said to be able to make them real people, though this hasn't been proven. This is why the Heartless followed Sora around whenever they could, they wanted to be real, whole. This was Van's and Rem's goal, not that they were going to let Sora know this. He didn't yet know what a Wayfinder even was.

As Sora walked on the footpath he came across something rather strange. A blue creature with red eyes appeared right in front of him. It was unlike the others which were all black and had yellow eyes. This one was far different.

"Go away." The brunet said.

The creature didn't budge. Instead it just stood there, blocking his way.

"Fine, be that way." Sora said, turning around. He would head home, back into the light. Then he would be ok and these things would leave him be.

Unfortunately, when he got home, his father stopped him before he got to his room and it was near a mirror too so Vani and Rem were watching.

"You know that we all only want what is best for you." The man said.

"Yeah, I know." Sora replied.

"This school is going to help you recover from this… illness. They have the best medication in the state."

"It's not an illness because I'm not going crazy and I'm not taking any pills either. They didn't work before so why would they now?"

The brunet pushed past his father and went into his room before slamming the door shut. Why wouldn't anyone believe him? These things were real! They had been since he was ten!

The next morning, Sora awoke and got up bright and early. The sooner he got out of the house, the better. No mirrors for a whole day, that sounded good!

Sadly, the screen of his phone also counted as a mirror so he could still hear the voices of the two goons from time-to-time.

He got on the bus that would take him to his doom and he was glad to see that he was the first one on. He greeted the driver with a small smile and shy wave before he made his way to the back. The best seat on a bus was always the back, everyone knew that.

He sat down on the seat on the left and he gazed out the window in a detached way as he sat there.

The bus was exclusively for all the students that would be starting new, like him. Hopefully they weren't going to be all nut-cases and sane.

As the world outside whizzed past the window that Sora was staring at, he wondered if he would actually make some friends. Nah, probably not.

When the bus stopped, Sora was jolted awake. He looked down to the front of the bus to see who got on. A guy who looked at least sixteen got on and he had long, platinum hair that passed his shoulders and he wore all black. The male had stunning, aquamarine eyes that were half hidden by his fringe that covered some of his face.

Unlike Sora who only had a bag with him he carried a duffel bag on one shoulder and he didn't show any signs of it being heavy.

He spotted Sora and came over to him, since he was the only one on the bus.

"Can I sit here?" He asked politely.

"Sure!" The brunet said enthusiastically.

The silver-haired teen sat in the seat beside him and dumped his bag on the ground.

"I'm Sora Hikari!" The chocolate-haired boy said, introducing himself.

"Nice to meet you, Sora. I am Riku Akuma." The silver-haired teen responded. "You don't seem insane to me, are you normal?"

Sora laughed at his question and shook his head. "I'm not crazy, at least I hope I'm not. You seem normal to me but then again, what is normal?"

Riku decided that it was a good choice to come and sit with this stranger. It was better than dealing with Repliku who was constantly commenting on everything. He didn't seem to have an actual body, Repliku was only a voice that would not go away or shut up. Ansem, however, was a different matter. He had an actual body and he loved following Riku around and appearing wherever he was. The man wasn't around right now, that was a good thing. Repliku was being quiet too, obviously listening in on Riku's conversation with Sora.

"So what are you in for?" The brunet asked, curious to no end.

The silver-haired teen hesitated. "Hearing things and seeing things that are not real, apparently." He answered truthfully. He felt like Sora could be trusted which was odd, Riku didn't trust anyone, even himself.

"Me too! I mostly see things though."

At least Riku had found someone who was positive about their condition unlike himself.

'Maybe he will be a good influence on you.' Repliku said, stating his opinion.

Riku would have told him to shut up but he didn't want to make a bad first impression on Sora. Again, he wasn't sure why. He had never needed friends, though the girls were always swooning over him for only his looks and he was good at hiding his 'mental problem'. It didn't help when Repliku and Ansem were constantly chatting away and providing their insight on almost _everything._

After a little while, the conversation dropped but that was ok, the silence was comforting. That is until Vanitas and Remnant decided to make their voices known to Sora.

'Chatting him up, are you? How kinky.' Rem told Sora as his face appeared in the reflection of the window he had been looking out of. 'I didn't know that you liked men.'

The brunet knew that he was teasing but still. His cheeks reddened a bit at the white-haired teen's accusations, even if they were false.

His sapphire eyes glared at emerald ones for a very long time until the bus stopped again. This time, a blonde-haired boy came on wearing black and white. Around his neck was pendent of an X and around his wrists he wore bands with a checkered print on them.

He also came to the back of the bus like Riku had and he sat down next to the silver-haired teen without a word. It wasn't that he wasn't friendly, it was just that he found it hard to talk to people. He wasn't really a people person. The only reason why he chose to sit at the back was because any other spot would have been lame. In his opinion anyway.

"Hey there! My name is Sora Hikari!" The brunet said, looking across Riku and at the honey-blonde.

The teen looked over to the stranger, surprised by how cheerful he was considering where they were all going.

"I'm Roxas Ongaku."

His eyes trailed over to the other teen who said in turn, "And I'm Riku Akuma."

'Another one. Are you going to chat him up to, eh Sora?' Remnant teased, still on the window.

Sora ignored him this time and fixed his attention on Roxas. "Do you see things too?" He asked.

Roxas shook his head, his feathery hair waving as he did. "No, I can only hear things."

They may not have known it yet but this meeting was either a coincidence or pure fate.

**AC: Some people prefer to give Remnant Vanitas red eyes or yellow but I like them to be green. **

**Hope you guys enjoyed and I'm not sure what to do about pairings yet. Don't worry, more is to come! I have exams but my birthday is coming up too! Hopefully I can get the next chapter done before the end of the month.**


	2. Stengthened Bonds

**Insanity Mixed With Reality**

**SoRiku, VanVen, SoRoku (not sure if I'll add SoRoku but we'll see what happens), AkuRoku**

**Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is confusing enough without me owning it!**

**Summary: Sora sees things that other people can't. He sees creatures with black bodies and yellow eyes and two guys who won't leave him alone, Vanitas and Remnant. Soon, he gets sent to a special school for troubled teens and meets Riku and Roxas who have their own problems. Add Repliku and Ventus into the mix and then you've got an epic story!**

**And no, Remnant is not one of my characters. Look up Remnant Vanitas. None of them are my characters. And Repliku is not my character (Riku Replica)**

**AC: An idea I got from seeing this video on YouTube- **

**Please read and enjoy! Leaving a comment might make me want to write more. You can comment even if you don't have a profile on here.**

**And thanks to TheAnnoyingVoice who reviewed last chapter and who was my first review for this fic! And also thanks to bookgirl111 as well!**

**And Lime Gap, I'll try to explain who Remnant Vanitas is in the next chapter since I already have too many words in my author's comments. Chapter 3 is coming soon, in a few days.**

"**Speech" **_**'Thoughts' **_**'Speech of the illusions (Van, Rem, Rep, etc)' **_**Memories**_

**WARNINGS 4 chapter: Axel acting kind-of stalker-like towards Roxas but what do you expect? He pretty much stalked him in KH2, the manga especially. And of course, Vanitas will swear in this chapter but not much and Roxas too.**

**Chapter 2: Strengthened Bonds**

Soon, the bus made a few more stops and many other teenagers go on, most looking as gloomy as ever. One certain red-head bounded down to the back of the bus as soon as he spotted a head full of blonde hair and blue eyes that could be as cold as ice at times.

"Rox-ass!"

The blonde mentioned groaned and buried his head in his hands and Riku and Sora raised an eyebrow.

The tall, red-haired teen sat down on the free side of Roxas, his emerald eyes fixed on the golden-haired boy who would not dare look at him for a second. "Found you!" He said in a devious voice.

"Axel, piss off." Roxas replied, sounding rather irritated.

"Do you two know each-other?" The brunet asked, always the curious one.

'Axel' grinned and nodded, now noticing the other two teens. "Yep, his best friend. We go waaaaay back, don't we Rox?"

The blonde shook his head and grunted, obviously not liking what he was hinting at.

"Anyway, my name is Axel. Got it memorized?"

The brown-haired teen beamed and nodded, his unruly hair bobbing up and down as he did. "Yep! My name is Sora Hikari and this is Riku Akuma!"

The silver-haired teen was glad that he didn't have to introduce himself. He wasn't too good at that kind of stuff yet he been able to with Sora. That was hard enough.

"Cool. You guys psychopaths like me?"

Sora and Riku were taken off guard by his question but when they saw Axel smirk, they felt at ease.

"No, he actually means it." Roxas said as he lifted his head up. "This bastard is a pyromaniac so that means he loves fire and burning stuff. You should have seen the last house he burnt down, there was nothing left of it."

"Awww, you still mad about that? There wasn't anyone inside!"

"There could have been!"

"But there wasn't!"

This was going to be a looooooooooong bus ride.

Once the school came into sight, nearly everyone on the bus stiffened.

Oblivion Institute for Troubled Teens was not a pretty sight. The entire building looked like a twisted version of a castle that was coloured yellow and the roofs were green. Trees surrounded the area and fences that were obviously for keeping the students in were all around the school.

'What a pile of shit.' Vanitas said, quite bluntly. The back of his head showed on the window so Sora could tell that he was indeed looking at it.

'It looks like a baby vomited on a pile of yellow, building blocks.' Remnant said, adding his comment. His head appeared as well to look at their new home for a whole year.

Sora agreed with Rem's opinion. It seemed pretty accurate and funny. A smile appeared on his face.

"Oh, looks like someone's excited." Axel said before elbowing Roxas who had his head buried in his hands yet again. "Why can't you be more like him, Rox?"

"Because you're an ass, that's why." Roxas retorted, not missing a beat.

Riku tuned them out after a while. They seemed like an old married couple or something.

'What a bland place, how pathetic. They could have at least painted the place black.' Repliku said.

Black, the colour of darkness. Ansem always seemed to be droning on about it and at times Repliku joined in.

'I don't like this place.' Ventus said, finally speaking up in Roxas's head for the first time today. 'It gives me a bad feeling, even if I don't really have a body to feel with.'

'_What do you mean?' _Roxas asked, mentally. He learned long ago that instead of talking to his 'imaginary friend' aloud he could speak to him through a mental connection that they shared.

'I'm not sure… I just don't like it here. I can't really explain it.' Ven replied, sounding unsure and a tad distant.

The bus came to a stop in front of the building and the students started to get off and Sora, Riku, Roxas and Axel agreed to stick together. Over the hour that they had been together, they had already become friends. It wasn't hard, Sora had something about him that made the other three actually want to be near him. Odd how it hadn't been like that in all his other schools.

The brunet was glad that he hadn't seen any Heartless popping up in the shadows. He guessed that they were having trouble following him from his house to here.

"We have to go see the receptionist to get our room numbers and schedules." Axel told the other three. He was a lot taller than them and he seemed to be skinny around the waist. Like Riku, he wore all black and that helped show off how thin some of his frame was.

"You seem to know a lot about this place." Riku commented.

Axel winked and nodded. "That's because I went here last year."

"Then why the hell did you take our bus and why didn't you tell me that you go here! Frickin' jerk!"

"Calm down, Rox. I only took your bus so I could see you. How could I miss a chance like that?"

"Asshole!"

Sora and Riku got to witness Roxas hitting Axel over the head with his bag.

"Awww, you didn't have to hit me! You're so aggressive for someone so small and petite."

And then they got to see Roxas kick Axel somewhere where the sun didn't shine.

This was going to be a very, very, very long year.

The lady at the reception desk was behind a glass screen and she handed each student their key to their room through a metal slot, their room number and a pile of paper sheets containing the school's dress codes and their class schedules as well.

"Room 13." Sora read aloud, looking at the tag on his key.

"Same." Riku replied, a bit suspicious.

"Me too." Roxas said, surprised.

This was more than a coincidence, not that they knew that. They were put together for a reason but that was yet to be revealed.

"Awww, I don't get to be with you guys. I'm in room 78 with my pal Saix." Axel said, frowning. He wanted to be with Roxas.

"Yes! I'm not with you! Haha, pervert!" The blonde retorted, punching his fist in the air with a grin on his face.

Sora and Riku chuckled when they saw Axel pretending to cry. His little act didn't work on Roxas though. He was use to the red-haired guy's behaviour and antics.

Once the four got to room 13, they let Sora unlock the door since he got his key first. As soon as he opened the door, his mouth hung open in complete shock.

Inside was not what he expected, it actually looked like a room fit for three teenagers and not for crazy-psychopaths like he thought.

The room had white walls and grey carpet along with mostly red furniture. It actually looked better than Sora's own room and very modern.

There was even a plush, red couch and a TV. A bookshelf was near the couch and many windows were letting in light at the far end of the room. Three single beds were in the room and all had red covers and white pillows.

"Wow, I never expected something like this." Roxas commented as he pushed past everyone else and picked the bed closest to a door that Sora guessed led into the bathroom. The brunet shrugged and walked over to the bed closest to the window, forgetting about the fact that windows had reflections.

For the moment, none of the 'imaginary friends' seemed to be appearing or putting in their input.

"I'm going to go check up on Saix and make sure that he hasn't lost his cool and gone on one of his rampages again. Seeya!" Axel said before he bolted down the hall, thinking of his chakrams that he had left lying on the bed, waiting to be put up on the wall. He hoped that his room-mate hadn't broken them. Anything but his precious chakrams! They had been imported from some faraway place and it had been a lot of trouble smuggling them in since students were not allowed to leave the school without a teacher or permission. Lucky for Axel though, he had certain _connections._

Sora sat on his bed playing games on a small, hand-held console that he had brought with him. Unlike other times where Van and Rem would randomly pop up and mess him up, he was doing well in the game. Where were those fiends anyway? They had become quiet, too quiet. Were they sleeping or something? Could they even sleep?

"This place might not be so bad." Riku said.

He was lying on his bed, his hands folded behind his head. His own house was huge since his family was rich but it always felt so… empty.

"Yeah. It's as if we're on vacation." The brunet replied before turning off the gaming system and putting it away in a dresser next to his bed. He came over to the silver-haired male and sat on the floor, next to his bed. "I hope our teachers are nice."

The trio had compared their schedules and they were all in the same classes. They had yet to see if Axel would also be in their classes. He probably wouldn't be because he had gone to the school a year before.

Roxas was taking a shower at the moment in the place that he deemed the most perfect, clean bathroom ever. He was the kind of person who didn't really like dirt or clutter and his bedroom at home was always in an orderly fashion, very unlike what Sora's room was. You could hardly take a few steps without stepping on a piece of clothing. Riku's room was like the rest of his house, big and empty.

"Yeah. I thought that this school was for troubled teens but this room is something that those kids who go to rich schools would get. It makes me feel kind of suspicious, actually." Riku commented.

He didn't know it but he was on to something, something big. The actual purpose of spoiling the students with great rooms to stay in was to lure them into a false sense of security. They had no idea that dozens of mini-cameras were located in all of their rooms and around the school as well. Some students knew, others didn't.

Once Roxas was done with his rather long shower, he came out of the bathroom with only long, black shorts on and a white towel resting on his shoulders. His golden hair was still wet so it looked darker and water droplets fell to the carpet, not that he seemed to mind. A little water never hurt anybody.

Steam came out of the now open bathroom door and Sora laughed and said, "That took you long enough! Riku and I were worried that you fell into the toilet or something on your way out!"

Roxas rolled his eyes at the comment and replied, "I wasn't _that _long. And besides, it takes time to wash my hair."

Even though Sora's hair was wilder than his and Riku's was longer, their hair took less time to wash. Maybe Roxas was some kind of clean-freak or something? All-well. Everyone has their quirks and odd habits.

"So… Do you guys have families?" Sora asked sometime later, once Roxas had dried off and had gotten properly dressed.

The three of them were sitting on the soft carpet, basking in the warm sunlight that beamed through the windows that they were facing. Sora sat in the middle of the two and they sat on either side of him. Riku on the left and Roxas on the right.

Vanitas appeared in the mirror of a very large wardrobe and he could only see their backs facing his way. For a second, he thought that the scene was oddly familiar, though he couldn't quite place why.

"Yeah." Riku replied, his aquamarine eyes fixing to look at his hands. "I don't really care for them much though. I guess that I have been growing more and more distant from them each year."

Sora looked sad to hear this news but it increased when he heard what Roxas said next.

"No, I've lived in boarding schools since I was a little kid. I don't have any family and I've been looking after myself for most of my life."

Both the brunet and the silver-haired teen felt pity for the blonde but this fact only seemed to irritate him. "Don't you guys dare start feeling sorry for me! I'm here now, am I not? It's fine that I have no family. Do you both know why?"

Sora and Riku shook their heads and didn't interrupt.

"Because if I had family then I would be sad if they died. It's better this way, if I have nobody in my life that will cause me pain by dying."

The room was silent for a few minutes and once Roxas had decided that his words had sinked in long enough, he directed his attention to Sora and asked, "And what about you? Do you have a family?"

"Yes and no." The chocolate-haired teen answered, rubbing the back of his neck. "I guess that I am pretty much like both of you. Like Riku, I have a family but I'm not really connected to them. And like you, Roxas I am an orphan or _was _until I got adopted by the family I'm with now. The only real family I have is my only known distant relative, Aqua. She's really nice and very motherly and she also gave me this!"

Sora touched the three-pointed crown pendent dangling around his neck. "She lives really far away though and she doesn't know that much about my mother or father."

The brunet hung his head down a bit. "They died when I was only six."

Vanitas watched as Roxas and Riku enveloped Sora in a hug and the brunet immediately grew flushed in the face. "What are you two doing? Roxas's story was way sadder than mine!" He exclaimed.

"No, it's really not." The golden-haired boy replied, not letting go.

"He's right. Out of the both of us, you suffered the most pain." Riku added, also not letting go.

Vanitas faintly smiled at their antics and a funny feeling was in his chest. When he realized what he was doing, he immediately scowled. _'How sappy.' _He thought bitterly. _'So what if the brat lost his family! At least he actually has a damn body and is whole!'_

His bitterness was brought on by feeling positive emotions which he wasn't use to at all. Negative emotions were more his thing anyway. Being a ghost for so long did that to you or maybe it was just him? Who knows?

Once Axel got back to his room, he was glad to find that nothing was broken. The blue-haired teen known as Saix was just sitting on his bed, reading.

Their room was the same as Sora's, Roxas's and Riku's. Everyone's who lived in this school was apart from the teachers and the rooms down below the school.

The school was a lot different in the place known as 'down below'. There were many rumours about it from the older students and it was said to be a place where you didn't want to end up. And there was said to be secret passages built all around the school that led to 'down below'. If anyone was unlucky enough to fall down one of the passages they were rumoured to never come back or be heard from again.

"Did you report back to Xemnas?" Saix asked, not even looking at his roommate as he said it. His golden eyes stayed trained on what he was reading.

Axel ran a hand through his fiery mane and shook his head. "No, not yet. I guess I was too caught up in the excitement of seeing Roxas again."

Saix gave a slight nod of the head, having heard of his friend mention the boy many times before. "Just don't get too involved with him. He is new here and he is part of Project Reanimation." He advised the red-haired male. "And the other two that now share a room with him."

These two students and a handful of others were working for the deputy principal, Xemnas. They had worked together for years and had designed and built this school together. They didn't accept ordinary teens, only the ones with mental problems and gifts.

"I know, I know. I'm not stupid." Axel mumbled. "Don't worry, I will stay loyal to the Organization."

**AC: In this chapter where it mentions what Sora's and Roxas's rooms are like at their houses, I did on actual check on what they looked like in the games. I'm going to try to add some elements from Kingdom Hearts like certain places, creatures, etc. The school in this story does look a lot like the real Castle Oblivion but it is a bit more modern. The rooms in the inside will not be the same as in the games but I might change that later on. If you have anything you would like me to add then just ask. **

**And this fic is labelled to be supernatural and hurt/comfort. The supernatural part is already in here but the hurt/comfort is yet to come! This story was supposed to be a lot darker but I've been in a good mood lately and I couldn't do it! More is to come though!**

**And I'm still not sure about the pairings but it will take some time for the relationships to develop. Is there on any suggestions on who you guys want me to add in from Final Fantasy or any pairings?**


	3. Sorrowful Birdcage

**Insanity Mixed With Reality**

**SoRiku, VanVen, slight SoRoku, AkuRoku**

**Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is too epic for me to claim as mine. **

**Summary: Sora sees things that other people can't. He sees creatures with black bodies and yellow eyes and two guys who won't leave him alone, Vanitas and Remnant. Soon, he gets sent to a special school for troubled teens and meets Riku and Roxas who have their own problems. Add Repliku and Ventus into the mix and then you've got an epic story!**

**And no, Remnant is not one of my characters. Look up Remnant Vanitas. None of them are my characters. And Repliku is not my character (Riku Replica)**

**AC: Ok, I want to explain who Remnant Vanitas (also known as Vanitas Sentinel) is in the game Birth By Sleep so people know and acknowledge him. He is a secret boss in Birth By Sleep and is unlocked by completing the final story in the game. Pretty much he is 'Vanitas's will' and looks the same as Van but instead of red, he has white on his Dark Mode suit. I hope I explained it well since I haven't unlocked him in the game yet to fight. I decided to add him in this fic since hardly any have him. Poor guy gets left out. **

**Thanks for the reviews, not matter how few I have. I really appreciate it! Please give me more feedback too! **

**And this story is mostly is based around Sora since he is the main character, Vanitas too.**

**And I guess the school in this fic is a mix of Castle Oblivion and the one in Hollow Bastion.**

"**Speech" **_**'Thoughts' **_**'Speech of the spirits (Van, Rem, Rep, etc)' **_**Memories and dreams**_

**WARNINGS 4 chapter: Weirdness, creepiness and a tad bit of swearing.**

**Chapter 3: Sorrowful Birdcage**

"We start school tomorrow." Roxas said, as he got under the sheets of his bed. "So you two better not keep me up."

Riku rolled his eyes as he got settled in his own bed that was near Sora's. He didn't go to sleep as quickly as normal people. His constant thinking and reminiscing kept him wide awake and he had had this habit ever since he was little child. It seems like he got it when he started hearing Repliku speak to him and seeing Ansem as well.

Ansem only appeared when something interesting was happening or to cause havoc for Riku, especially when he was trying to study. Repliku added his input often, even when Ansem wasn't around.

Sora flicked the lights off and got into his bed, his back facing the window while he faced Riku. "Do you think that everyone at this school is like us? Sane I mean." He asked, in a small voice.

The silver-haired teen smiled and said reassuringly, "Of course. And maybe we can do some exploring of this place tomorrow. Who knows what secrets this place holds?"

Riku loved exploring places and he had been in many caves before just to get the thrill of a new adventure and secrets. It was very unlikely that they were going to find interesting in this place though, it was still a school. Why would there be anything special here if a student could just stumble on it and find it?

Vanitas appeared in the window and he glared at Sora's back. Soon, he shook his head and decided not to keep him up. He had his own problems to deal with. This place, this school and this very room made his skin crawl! He hated it here but he couldn't quite pin-point why. It was as if there was something watching him but that couldn't be true, only Sora could see him!

Wait…

Golden eyes flickered to a random corner of the room and they narrowed as a small but visible light was seen blinking. If you didn't know where to look then you would miss it. It was a wonder that even Vanitas had spotted it but the room was dark since it was night-time. That still didn't explain how he knew where it was though. It was as if he was use to this sort-of thing.

'A spy-cam.' The raven-haired boy whispered aloud. That's why he had been feeling funny, Sora was being watched and somehow he had felt it. Was their bond as the spirit and the Wayfinder getting stronger?

Vanitas scoffed at that but it was a possibility.

'What's got you so worked up?' Remnant asked, his green eyes looking around the room. He hadn't had the same feeling as Vanitas and he definitely couldn't spot the cameras.

'Cameras. They are everywhere, haven't you noticed?' Van asked curiously. Why could he sense them but Rem couldn't?

The white-haired spirit shook his head. 'Nope. But I guess if you say there are cameras then there are.' He said before fading out, now bored.

Vanitas raised an eyebrow and sighed. Even he didn't know everything about Wayfinders and the spirits connected to them. He knew that you had to find the right Wayfinder because if they were the wrong one they either wouldn't be able to see you or wouldn't be able to help you. Hopefully, Sora was the right one this time.

Before he faded out too, Van put his hand on the invisible barrier that kept him and Rem confined within the mirrors and other reflective surfaces. His golden eyes lingered on Sora for a moment longer before he disappeared. What he just did… even he didn't have an explanation for it but he felt sometime like a longing to just break the barrier, he did not yet know how to do that. For some reason or another, he wanted to be closer to his Wayfinder.

"_Hey, why do look so down? Come on, smile! We still have each-other don't we?"_

_Four year-old Roxas nodded at the person who said it._

_The real Roxas watched from a distance and he was wondering what was going on. Was this a dream or a memory? Maybe it was a mixture of the two._

_The younger him was huddled against a building with torn clothes and it looked like he hadn't had a good wash in weeks, maybe he hadn't. A boy sat next to him but his face was shrouded with shadows so you couldn't see who it was._

"_I don't… I don't remember any of this." Roxas whispered, watching as the younger him drifted off to sleep, shifting closer to the unknown person. "And why can't I see that guy's face? Is this some kind of nightmare?"_

_He did not have any memories from before he turned seven. All he could remember was waking up in an orphanage, scared and confused. After he had calmed down he had felt an empty feeling. He had lost something but what was it? Had it been his family? The people who worked at the place didn't know. No-one knew he was. All Roxas had known was his name and age, that's it._

_Roxas watched as the person with the shadowed face rested his head on the sleeping child. "We're going to be alright, I promise. I'll find a way to get us munny to buy what we need to survive." The mysterious person said._

_After that was said, everything faded into darkness._

Roxas awoke with a start. His heart was pounding quickly in his chest and sweat broke out on his forehead. _ 'What… did that all mean?' _He thought, a frown forming on his lips. He hated it when he couldn't work something out and he easily became frustrated. One thing was for sure though; he was going to get some answers he just… didn't know how yet. When he was frustrated or irritated, it was never a good thing. He became rather violent and would even fight to get some answers. All he needed was a stick or something and he was good to go and beat the hell out of whoever he had to.

Or he could just use his fists but he preferred not to get his hands dirty.

The golden-haired boy closed his eyes and let out a sigh. He guessed that it was the middle of the night and he really needed his sleep.

The next morning was not as bright as the day earlier. It was raining and the many storm clouds outside in the sky were dark and foreboding. It was as if it was some kind of warning what was to come, at least Sora thought so. He never had been fond of storms. Nothing good could ever come from then, in his opinion anyway.

The brunet got out of bed and got changed from his pyjama shorts and into baggy, black pants and a navy-blue hoodie. He made sure that his necklace was hidden under his clothing and proceeded to put on some sneakers.

Riku was already up and wearing black jeans and a black zipped-up shirt that exposed his biceps. Sora wondered if he felt cold but he brushed that thought aside.

Roxas was nowhere to be seen so both Sora and Riku guessed that he was in the bathroom doing his hair or something like that. Sure enough, after a few minutes of waiting the blonde came out of the bathroom wearing cream-coloured pants and a white, long-sleeved shirt with a black, checker design on it near the top. Both of his wrists had checker bands on them and the same X-shaped pendent was seen hanging around his neck. He hadn't bothered to hide it like Sora had.

"Ready to head out, beauty-queen?" Riku sneered which caused Sora to snicker.

"Yeah, yeah. Just shut-up you two. Not all of us want to look like a mess on our first day at this place." Roxas retorted.

The trio walked through the school together and they had agreed that for the rest of the year they had to stick together.

As they walked down the red-carpeted hall they noted that all of the other teams didn't look like the 'troubled teens' that this school was supposed to be created for. Everyone looked normal, mostly everyone anyway.

They made their way into a place called the Great Hall and took their seats at an empty table made out of wood and Sora sat in the middle of the other two. This seemed to be a common thing. In the hall there were many other tables occupied by other students who were chatting away. Everyone was waiting for the Principal to make his appearance on a huge stage and make a speech or something. Every student in the school was present.

"May we sit here?" A girl asked with short, black hair.

Two other girls stood with her and one had red hair while the other had blonde. All three had blue eyes and their facial features were alike.

"Sure!" Sora said in a friendly manner.

The strangers sat down on the other side of the table and the red-haired one sat infront of Sora and she was smiling at him. "Thank you." She said sweetly. "My name is Kairi."

The girl that had spoken early said, "And my name is Xion." She pointed to the blonde and said, "That's Namine."

Namine looked busy drawing in a large sketchbook that she had brought with her and she was using crayons to draw with. Her brow was furrowed in utter concentration to get her picture finished.

"Cool! My name is Sora!" The brunet said before he put his arms around his two friends' shoulders. "And this is Riku and Roxas!" As he said each name he nodded his head at the one he meant so the girls would know who was who.

"I have a mouth you know." Roxas muttered.

"But I thought you forgot how to use it." Sora retorted.

Kairi giggled at their antics and Xion cracked a smile.

After a few minutes of casual conversing, Sora's interest directed to Namine. From what he could see, she was drawing something very detailed. "What are you drawing?" The curious brunet asked.

Namine finished adding in some shading and she slid the sketchbook across the table to Sora without a word.

The drawing was of a black bird trapped in what looked like a birdcage. There was no door to escape out of and around the cage there was darkness. The bird had a yellow eyes and it's wings were outstretched.

"A raven trapped within a bird cage with no door to get out. How will he escape with no direct way to? It seems that without help, he will be trapped in there forever." The girl said, her voice distant. It was as if what she said was directed at Sora so he took note of it in his mind.

Vanitas listened in from a glass cup that was located on the table. Had that girl been talking about him? If so then how did she know?

Sora didn't notice the spirit but he did notice that Namine had called the bird a 'he' and it had eyes like Vanitas and it was even coloured the same as his hair-colour.

The brown-haired teen handed the book back to the girl and he felt slightly anxious.

"Don't mind her, she's a bit funny at times." Xion told Sora and the two boys that were looking at the brunet in a concerned way. They decided to ask him about it later, at a better time.

Vanitas understood what the words had meant. It was about him, he knew it was. He was trapped in the mirrors forever and it was like a prison, or a cage. There was no easy way out and his only hope was that Sora was the right Wayfinder that he needed to release him from his ghost-like state. Remnant was depending on Sora too and the Heartless as well. Funny, the Heartless hadn't made an appearance ever since Sora got to this school. It was if they feared something but how could they when they didn't even have hearts or minds for that matter.

Roxas's sapphire-blue eyes roamed around the room and he unconsciously let them stop when he saw spiky, red hair.

He had spotted Axel at a table across the room with a group of people who all wore black. They all seemed to have numbers stitched into their clothes and they were the roman numerals. Some of the people looked familiar but Roxas didn't recognize all of them. He did recognize Demyx and Zexion who he had seen before hanging out with Axel a year ago. They seemed all right but Zexion seemed a tad sadistic. The rest were all strangers though.

The number of people sitting at the table, including Axel, was eleven. There didn't seem to be anyone with the number one on their clothing which was strange. Why number yourselves without including the first number? That's something that Roxas wanted to find out. Maybe he would ask Axel about it later or do some sneaking around…

All students silenced when the sound of static filled the room, hurting some ears here and there. Once the buzzing noise died down, all eyes directed to the large stage where two men stood. Both had dark skin and strange, golden eyes that seemed to make a variety of kids uncomfortable.

"Welcome all to Oblivion Institute for Troubled Teens like yourselves." The oldest of the two said. He was bald and he had a small, grey beard. "I am Xehanort, principal of this establishment. And this here is Xemnas," He placed his hand on the younger man's shoulder. "my second in charge and principal whenever I am absent."

'Those guys scare the crap out of me.' Rem commented as his face appeared on the reflective surface of the table.

Sora inwardly agreed with him, for once. The men did seem to have something creepy about them.

"I wish you all well in the future and hope that many of you will be able to pass the _tests _during the year." Xehanort went on saying. "Not all of you will pass though, only a select few will."

The way he said it sent shivers down many students' spines.

"Good luck."

Vanitas let his face appear next to Remnant's and he had a frown on his face and his brow was furrowed. Why did that man's voice sound so familiar? Where had he heard it? Maybe at some point in his past life, when he was alive.

Spirits sometimes gained amnesia depending on how they passed on. Vanitas and Remnant both had no memories before they became what they are now.

The spirit with Roxas, Ventus had the same problem and so did Riku's two spirits, Ansem and Repliku apparently. They were all depending on their Wayfinders to help them out, though they were not sure how. Apparently staying close to their Wayfinder was supposed to help somehow but there hadn't been any changes so far. It was possible to get the wrong Wayfinder but spirits couldn't really tell which person they were supposed to be stuck with.

After Xehanort finished his little speech, food was being brought around to each table and everyone dug in eagerly.

Platters full of delicious looking food was placed onto Sora and his new friends table and Roxas inspected the food with a critical eye. Sora could tell that he was a very fussy eater from his actions but he couldn't really blame him. Who knew if this food was even edible? School food never seemed to be.

"Namine, you have to eat!" Kairi complained. "Stop drawing and try something, all the food looks yummy!"

"No, I have to finish this sketch." The blonde-haired girl said, not even looking away from her work.

"You do not!"

"Do too."

"Do not!"

"Do too."

"Do NOT!"

Xion sighed at their bickering and said to the three boys, "Sisters can be so annoying sometimes, especially when you are a triplet."

"You three are sisters? You don't even look alike." Riku commented as he placed some bacon on his plate.

The only thing the three girls seemed to have in common was their eyes. Not even their skin tones were the same.

"Yeah, I know. Kairi is the oldest and Namine is the youngest which makes me the middle sister, unfortunately." The black-haired girl said with a groan.

Her hair was the shortest out of the three and the other two seemed to have the same length with their hair.

"Well, just be glad that you have sisters or any family for that matter." Roxas said, his tone gloomy. "Appreciate what you have before it slips away."

Sora put a hand on the blonde's shoulder and squeezed it slightly, providing comfort. "Are you ok?" The brunet asked, worried.

Roxas nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine." His tone was still gloomy though. "I would be a lot better if I had some Sea-Salt ice-cream though."

Sora wasn't sure what that flavour of ice-cream tasted like but it had to be good to make someone like Roxas feel better and want to eat it in order to cheer up.

"I'm sorry if I upset you." Xion said, sounding genuine. "I truly am."

"It's ok."

The conversation dropped off there because Roxas noticed a huge shadow looming over him. He turned and asked in annoyance, "What do you want, Axel?"

**AC: Finally, the story is picking up in the plot! Review please, it inspires me. I love creative reviews too! :D**


	4. Seeing Red

**Insanity Mixed With Reality**

**SoRiku, AkuRoku, VanVen, slight SoRoku, **

**Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is not mine but I wish it was, who wouldn't? **

**Summary: Sora sees things that other people can't. He sees creatures with black bodies and yellow eyes and two guys who won't leave him alone, Vanitas and Remnant. Soon, he gets sent to a special school for troubled teens and meets Riku and Roxas who have their own problems. Add Repliku and Ventus into the mix and then you've got an epic story!**

**And no, Remnant is not one of my characters. Look up Remnant Vanitas. None of them are my characters. And Repliku is not my character (Riku Replica)**

**AC: Thanks to everyone who has been reviewing, it really boosts my mood! :D I can't wait until KH3 comes out but it will be around next year! That's way too long away, for me anyway.**

**And to answer your question, Lime Gap you have to wait and see! **

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, as usual and this chapter might have been delayed since it was my birthday. **

**Reviews are always welcome and I want to thank TheAnnoyingVoice for their long and very detailed reviews!**

**And sorry about the wait, it was my birthday and I've been a bit sad. I'm better and happier now though!**

"Speech" _'Thoughts' ___**'**Speech of the spirits (Van, Rem, Rep, etc)' _Memories and dreams " ' _**Voice**

**WARNINGS 4 chapter: The usual and I'm going to be adding in some AkuRoku in this chapter or hints of it at least. I'll get to SoRiku later since it's the main pairing and all pairings will be very important to the story.**

**There will be blood in this chapter too, just warning you.**

**Chapter 4: Seeing Red**

The conversation dropped off there because Roxas noticed a huge shadow looming over him. He turned and asked in annoyance, "What do you want, Axel?"

The red-haired man glared at the three girls before he grabbed Roxas's arm. "Can I speak to you for a second?"

"You are now!"

"Alone I mean."

The blonde-haired teen let out a huge sigh and complied. He got out of his chair and followed Axel who was still holding his arm until they came to an empty space in the room where there weren't any other students around to hear.

"Why are you hanging out with the witch-sisters?" Axel asked, letting Roxas's arm go and drop back to his side.

"The who? If you mean Kairi, Xion and Namine then I like them. They seem nice and they came to sit with Sora, Riku and I. Not the other way around." Sapphire eyes glared into emerald ones. "And it's mean to call them the 'witch-sisters' you jerk."

"But I have a good reason to and everyone else calls them that."

"You've changed Axel, you really have." Roxas said dryly. "And why are you even talking to me? You seem to have a bunch of new _friends._" He said the word 'friends' with so much venom in his voice that Axel visibly flinched.

Both guys had known each-other ever since Roxas turned ten and now he was fifteen. Axel himself was eighteen so there was a bit of an age-gap between them. Despite that they were best friends but they had drifted apart over the last few months.

They met on very interesting terms.

_Twilight Town was well-known for being the best place to see sunsets and it was known for its special, signature ice-cream: Sea-Salt ice-cream. The town was also known to have the most gangs than any other and hardly any police. It was the perfect place to challenge a gang's strength especially with the Struggle which was held very often due to popular demand and attendance. _

_A kid of the age of ten slipped behind houses, staying in the shadows. He held a cardboard box in his hands and it seemed very precious because he was holding it close to his chest._

_The kid had blonde hair and it was poking out of his hood that he wore over his head. His clothing all seemed to have a checker pattern on them and a silver pendent that looked like an 'X' hung around his neck, jingling as he moved around._

_The kid's name was Roxas Ongaku and he was known to be an orphan and a well-mannered boy in the eyes of nearly everyone around town. Oh how wrong they were. Roxas was anything but well-mannered nor was he innocent. He could put on a fake mask though to fool a majority of people. Only those that he deemed to be his friends could see the true him. Why? Because who would accept a short-tempered boy who stole from time-to-time just to survive? He didn't want anyone's help, that's why he stole in order to live._

_He stopped before an alley that had a blanket covering its entrance to ward off any prying eyes. This is where Roxas's friends always hung out at. They were an odd bunch and it was a wonder how these four kids got along so well. Hayner was considered to be the self-appointed leader of the group and he seemed to have the habit of meddling in all sorts of affairs of the town. He was also a bit hot-headed at times like Roxas but he was a good guy once you got to know him. Pence was the genius in the mini-gang for he was the smartest person that Roxas or the others had ever met despite his age. Olette, being the only girl in the group, was known to be more sensible than the others but she was actually quite impulsive at times, even if that was hard to believe._

_The four called the place 'the Usual Spot' and it was like a sanctuary just for them. The Usual Spot had various items in it that others would call junk. There was a dartboard, blankets, carpet and even a few old couches located inside._

_Before Roxas could even make it inside he was hit by a sudden wave of nausea, nearly resulting in making him drop the box. _

_He came over to the closest wall and he put his back against it and slid down until he was sitting on the pavement. The box was hugged closer to his chest as pain shot through his skull as if something was being drilled into it. _

'_What's happening to me?' He thought, a pained expression on his face. 'Why is this happening?'_

"_Hey, are you ok?" _

_Roxas looked up to see a guy who looked at least thirteen looking down at him with hypnotic, emerald eyes. He had really spiky hair that was coloured a brilliant shade of red, or orange. Roxas couldn't tell which._

"…"

_He stayed silent, not trusting this random stranger who seemed to wear all black. _

"_Are you mute or something?"_

"_No!" Roxas snapped, breaking his silence._

"_Oh, just rude then." _

_This guy was really starting to get on Roxas's nerves. Well, at least the pain was gone and the sudden sick feeling. Why did that happen anyway? What had caused it?_

_The red-haired kid held his hand out to Roxas who in turn eyed it suspiciously. "My name is Axel, got it memorized?"_

_The blonde sighed in defeat and clutched the box with one hand while he took the offered hand in his other. "I'm Roxas."_

"_Cool, I'll never forget a name like that."_

"_And I'll never forget that stupid catchphrase of yours."_

_Soon after, Roxas showed Axel around Twilight Town since he was new to the place. They both stood before the old Clocktower checking the time. For some reason they felt like they could trust each-other though they hardly knew the other. That was a great feat because Roxas had never really been the trusting type._

"_What's in that box anyway?" Axel asked, looking down at Roxas who was a lot shorter than him much to the blonde's annoyance. _

_Sapphire eyes glanced down at the box along with a small smile. "Sea-Salt ice-cream."_

_It hadn't been that hard for Roxas to steal it. The shopkeeper had their back turned at the time of the theft and Roxas had easily swiped it under his nose without causing any suspicion. He was going to share the box with Hayner, Pence and Olette but Axel turned up._

_Axel raised an eyebrow and asked, "You act like it's the most precious thing in the world."_

_Maybe it was, to Roxas anyway._

_The golden-haired boy smiled and nodded his head. "It is to me." The reason was that it was the only thing that linked him to his past. His oldest memory was of eating Sea-Salt ice-cream with someone who seemed to be blurred in his memory. Roxas deemed that person important though he wasn't sure about who they were. One day he wanted to find out who it was. For now he savoured the taste of the ice-cream and ate it every chance he could. Who knows, maybe if he ate enough of it then a memory would be sparked._

_Axel smiled and looked to the sky for a moment. He spotted faint traces of orange so he knew that it was nearly sunset. "How about we sit at the top of that ol' clock tower and share?" He suggested._

_Roxas was wary at first but he soon agreed. He couldn't eat all of the ice-cream by himself. That would just be greedy and selfish._

_Axel's idea sure had been a good one. They sat side-by-side on the top of the building with their legs dangling over the edge. The box lay open with wrappers filling it to the brim and popsicle sticks that had been licked clean. Reds and oranges of all shades painted the sky as a sign of the sun going down._

"_Hey Roxas,"_

"_Yeah?" The blonde asked in between licks of his ice-cream._

"_Have you ever wondered why sunsets are red?"_

_Roxas grunted as if to say, 'No but tell me anyway'._

"_Well, light is made up of lots of colours and out of all of those colours, red is the one that travels the farthest."_

_The blonde-haired boy nodded absently and stopped licking long enough to say, "Like I asked, know-it-all."_

_And so it began, the start of their friendship. It had only taken one day for them to become friends yet they had bonded so fast during that time. Maybe the Sea-Salt ice-cream was as special as Roxas had deemed it to be. _

Roxas still loved Sea-Salt ice-cream and it seemed to symbolise his friendship with Axel. Maybe that's why he hadn't been able to eat any of the treat in the last few weeks. The memory wasn't only important because of Axel but it was also important because it dated back to the time that he first started hearing Ventus's voice and feeling his presence within himself.

Axel let out a sigh and he shook his head. "I'm only trying to protect you. Kairi, Xion and Namine are bad news, trust me. I don't want you hanging out with them."

The golden-haired teen shot a very cold glare at the taller teen and shook his head. "I don't care what you think and I can hang out with whoever the hell I want to!"

He let the words sink in for a few seconds longer before he added, "And you're no better. All your friends look like criminals who are a part of a cult."

And with that said, Roxas stomped off and came back to the table that he had been recently sitting at and he plopped down next to Sora who seemed to be balancing a fork on his nose. Well, he was trying to and Kairi giggled as the metal object clanked down onto the table.

"Something wrong?" Riku asked Roxas, his words only reaching the blonde's ears.

Roxas shook his head slightly as a 'no' and didn't say a word. He simply rested his cheek against his hand and propped his elbow up on the table.

Riku knew better than to pester him for answers so he simply went back to watching Sora fail yet again to balance the fork on his nose. He had to admit, it was very entertaining to watch since Sora kept failing every single time he attempted it.

Sometime later, Sora stood up and declared, "I'll be back, I need to use the bathroom."

He then exited the dining hall and headed to his room, not wanting to use the other bathrooms even if they were closer. Who knew what went on in them?

Riku watched him and his aquamarine eyes lingered on him as he left. Sora hadn't looked upset so the silver-haired teen decided not to follow after him even if he wanted to. They hardly knew one-another but Riku had a feeling that Sora was very important to him. He couldn't explain why, it was just this odd feeling that he had.

The brown-haired teen felt a bit lonely as he walked back to his room by himself but he decided that he was acting like a baby. He didn't need someone to be at his side 24/7 though he couldn't help but feel like that's what he wanted; someone to be with him at all times for companionship more than anything else. You couldn't really blame him for feeling that way though, most of his life he had been alone due to being seen as different by other children and adults because of his special 'condition' to see things that others could not. Sora never tried pretending that Vanitas and Remnant were not real because he believed that they didn't deserve that despite how horrible they treated him at times.

As soon as Sora unlocked the door to his room and pushed it open he stepped back in pure shock. There was a crimson substance smothered all over the floor, walls, furniture and even the roof! Blood was dripping down from the ceiling and making gentle 'plipping' sounds as it hit the bloody floor.

No blood was on the windows or mirrors though which would have been suspicious if Sora had been in a better state of mind. For now though he was mentally breaking down and freaking out.

'_There is so much blood! Why is there so much blood, brother? I'm scared, please stop!' _A young voice whispered pleas into his head but he couldn't make sense of it or anything for that matter.

**Let the insanity begin…**

Sora fell to his knees, suddenly feeling rather weak. His face paled and his sapphire eyes were wide and unable to look away from the gory scene right in front of him. Why was this happening to him of all people? Surely he didn't deserve to see things as horrible as this! The brunet tasted bile rise up from his throat and come into his mouth but he didn't even have enough strength to vomit up the contents of his stomach. Instead he swallowed hard and focused and trying to get up and run.

**Surely that can't be the answer to all your problems…**

The second voice sent chills down Sora's spine and he couldn't tell if the speaker was male or female, real or imaginary. Maybe it was his own conscience speaking to him? It could be for all Sora knew.

"Sora? What are you doing sitting on the floor?" A male voice asked from behind the brunet.

Sora slowly forced himself to turn and he was relieved when he looked up and saw that it was one of his new friends.

"Riku!"

Before the silver-haired teen could ask why Sora looked like he had seen a ghost, he was nearly pushed over by the sudden weight that was clinging around his waist. Sora had his arms around him and his head buried in the taller teen's chest.

"I was so scared! Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Sora said with a sniffle, his speech rushed.

Riku raised an eyebrow, not sure what his friend could possibly be scared of. He awkwardly patted him on the back since he wasn't used to comforting someone or anyone for that matter. While he worked on trying to calm Sora down, Riku's eyes wandered over the brunet's head and to the empty room. Nothing seemed to be wrong, apart from the odd fly buzzing around, everything was how they had left it.

"Can you see it? All the blood?" Sora asked, afraid of Riku's answer.

"No. There's not a spot of blood in the room."

The brunet took in a shuddering breath, slightly relieved. So it had all been in his imagination then. Good. Imaginary things can't hurt you, physically anyway.

After a few minutes, Sora finally drew away from Riku and out of his arms reluctantly. A sheepish smile was on his face and he turned to look at the room. Yep, no sign of blood anywhere.

"What did you see?" Riku asked, his aquamarine eyes watching Sora as he fidgeted and rubbed the back of his head, embarrassed.

"I saw, I thought I blood nearly everywhere in our room. It was on the walls and stuff, dripping from the ceiling too. I was so scared but then you came…" He trailed off, his cheeks feeling heated all of the sudden. He started frowning. "Sorry for acting like a baby, Riku. I really am sorry and-"

He was cut off as Riku ruffled his spiky hair with his hand. "Hey! Cut it out!" Sora said, laughing as he tried to fix his hair.

"There's no need for you to apologize. If you say that you saw blood then I believe you and you look a lot better with a smile on your face."

"You actually believe me?"

"Yes."

"And did you just compliment my appearance?"

"Perhaps."

"That's not an answer!"

Deep down, Riku hoped that Sora had been imagining what he thought he saw. He did believe him though.

Two pairs of eyes watched the exchange of the two teens from the mirror and about a dozen cameras took it all in too. Someone was watching. Someone was always watching.

**AC: Sora started seeing things when he turned ten and Roxas started hearing things when he also turned ten. Just wanted to point that out so you don't all get confused or forget.**


	5. Passing Time

**Insanity Mixed With Reality**

**SoRiku, AkuRoku, VanVen, slight SoRoku, **

**Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is not mine and I don't own the characters. How could I possibly create someone as epic as Vanitas? **

**Summary: Sora sees things that other people can't. He sees creatures with black bodies and yellow eyes and two guys who won't leave him alone, Vanitas and Remnant. Soon, he gets sent to a special school for troubled teens and meets Riku and Roxas who have their own problems. Add Repliku and Ventus into the mix and then you've got an epic story!**

**And no, Remnant is not one of my characters. Look up Remnant Vanitas. None of them are my characters. And Repliku is not my character (Riku Replica)**

**AC: Please take some time to review, it will make me actually want to finish this fic. And thank you all who have read this far as well! I'll try to make the next chapters longer.**

"Speech" _'Thoughts' ___**'**Speech of the spirits (Van, Rem, Rep, etc)' _Memories and dreams " ' _**Voice**

**WARNINGS 4 chapter: **

**Chapter 5: Standing Time**

Tick-tock, tick-tock.

No lessons were scheduled for today since it was the first day of the term at Oblivion Institute for Troubled Teens. There wasn't much to do though.

Tick-tock, tick-tock.

Sora clapped his hands over his ears as he lay on his bed, annoyed by the loud clock in the room. It was an old-fashioned clock made out of pine and its hands were made out of some black material. The numbers were painted on and were all roman numerals. For some reason that Sora couldn't identify, Roxas seemed to keep looking at the numerals and glaring at them. For a while he thought that Roxas would come over to the clock and break it into little pieces.

Riku sat on his own bed reading an old-looking book with a black cover. Roxas was flipping through a magazine and he looked up every so often to glance at the old clock, the numerals especially. Why though? Did they mean something to him?

Sora shook his head and decided that it really was none of his business. Besides, he had to figure out why he had seen blood a few hours ago. It had disappeared once Riku came. It could have been an illusion or….

Sora directed his azure eyes to the biggest mirror in the middle of the wall in the room. No-one was there but his own reflection and a butterfly. Wait, a butterfly?

Sure enough he could make out a butterfly about the size of his hand in the reflection flapping around with its black wings. It kept bumping against the invisible barrier that separated the mirror from the real world.

**Are you going to help it?**

The chestnut-haired teen blinked when he heard the voice that had been speaking to him during the time that he saw blood everywhere in the room. At that time the voice had said, 'Let the insanity begin' and 'Surely that can't be the answer to all your problems' when he tried to will himself to run away.

Now the voice was asking him to help the butterfly on the other side of the mirror.

'_First I was seeing things and now I am hearing things. Great, I truly have lost it.' _Sora thought before he got off of his bed and walked over to the mirror warily.

Riku had also noticed Roxas glaring at the clock and he had a good idea why. Unlike Sora he had noticed that Axel had a roman numeral branded into his clothing. The numeral was VIII which was for the number eight and a bunch of other people also seemed to have the other roman numerals branded into their clothing as well. Students and teachers alike had these numbers and he had spotted the numeral for the number one on Xemnas's clothing. Everyone that had them also wore a lot of black and they didn't seem to be hiding the numerals as one might suspect. They seemed proud of them and not very subtle.

Riku decided that he needed to investigate this but not now. He needed to do it at the right time so he wouldn't raise suspicion. Maybe even Sora could help out. Speaking of Sora…

Sea-coloured eyes looked over to where the brunet now stood. He had his back to him and was just standing there in front of a large mirror. That was weird, really weird.

'You're acting like a love-sick puppy you know.' Repliku declared, his taunting voice ringing out in Riku's head.

'Yes, the Replica is right.' An older voice said. 'Are you queer, Riku?'

Riku nearly jumped when Ansem appeared at the other end of his bed, sitting there with a smug look on his face and an amused glint in his burning, ember eyes.

Replica? Why had he called Repliku Replica? The silver haired teen shook his head, deciding that he could find that out at another time. Right now he had to focus on the here and now.

Sora came up close to the mirror and he was only a foot away from it. He watched the butterfly before he stretched out his right arm and slowly moved his hand forward to touch it or at least the surface of the mirror.

**Yes, that's it. Do not be afraid for you are a Wayfinder, a rare being with unique abilities and skills… You are the one who will open the-**

The voice dropped off there and it seemed to have been cut off by some unknown force. The butterfly suddenly crumbled to wispy, grey ashes and scattered until nothing remained.

"Don't go." Sora whispered, feeling alone all of the sudden. He placed his hand against the mirror and he felt a vertigo and he stumbled backwards. If it hadn't been for the firm hands that held him in place then he would have fallen.

The brunet cocked his head to the side, as far as his neck would allow him to go and he was relieved to find that it was Riku who was holding him up, a worried look on his face.

"What happened? Who were you talking to?" The silver-haired teen asked in concern.

By this time Roxas came over as well, ditching his magazine on the floor. A worried look was also on his face combined with a puzzled one. Had Sora been talking to them when he said, 'Don't go.'?

Sora put on a fake smile and said, "Don't worry, it's nothing. I'm fine, really." He moved out of Riku's grip but he lost balance once again and Roxas immediately caught him and forced him to sit on the floor.

Riku and Roxas both crossed their arms and fixed Sora with a look from where they stood, looming over him, both silently demanding for an answer. They were damn intimidating, the pair of them. If Sora hadn't already been used to Vanitas and Remnants dark looks then he would have cracked already. And it really was none of their business anyway! The three of them had only known each-other for two days or even less than that! They only met yesterday.

Sapphire eyes glanced over to the door before going back to the two teens.

"Oh don't even think about it!" Roxas said, his voice having a threatening tone to it.

"You probably won't even get that far anyway." Riku added, making Sora furrow his brow. He was right though, he would probably collapse from the weird dizziness that he had. At the moment the room seemed to have started spinning faster and faster. A normal person would have vomited but Sora was far from normal.

His eyelids seemed to have gained some weight and they slid closed before he slumped backwards onto his back. A dull throbbing sensation was in his head and the last words that he heard were, "Stay with us Sora! Just hang on a little longer! Roxas has gone to get help!"

And then he slipped into unconsciousness, his whole world black. In this state though, he somehow heard the voice again finishing off the sentence that had been cut off earlier.

**You are the one who will open the door…**

Sora opened his eyes and groaned. Passing out had not been fun at all.

He stood up and rubbed his eyes before he took in his unfamiliar surroundings. Tall buildings as far as the eye could see were all around the area and they were all black with yellow light shining through the windows, lighting up the area. The sky was full of angry looking clouds and the air smelled of rain and petrol as one might expect to smell in a city with lots of cars. There were none in sight though which was extremely odd.

"Am I… dreaming? Is this a dream?" Sora asked out loud.

If this was a dream then why were all his senses normal? Shouldn't they be dulled or something? That usually happens when someone dreamed or was in a dream.

**This world is where all the lost souls go to take refuge until they reach the real world, reality, your world. I guess you could call this place the 'World That Never Was' or the place that insanity is born. Take a look around, can you see the souls?**

The voice sounded a lot clearer than all the other times that Sora had heard it but he decided not to question that now. Instead he started walking out of the alleyway that he had woken up in and it was then that he noticed that he was wearing a black cloak. It didn't feel right wearing it and he wanted to take it off but who knew what would happen if he did?

A few minutes later of walking and taking everything in, Sora finally stopped in front of a very large skyscraper with very intricate designs patterned onto it. Sora craned his neck back so he could see what was at the top and he was surprised to see what appeared to be large TV screens at the top of the skyscraper.

**Memory's Skyscrapper, of course you would be drawn to it. This place is where the first Wayfinder died by his spirit's hand. He was not a good spirit but a bad one, a Nightmare. Good ones are called Spirits. Simple and clean.**

The voice seemed very informative and helpful but Sora was still wary of it. Was it his own conscience or some other soul that had decided to hitch a ride with him? It would rude to just right out ask.

A rumble sounded through the city indicating that a storm was approaching fast. Right on cue, a flash of white lightning erupted from the sky and caused the brunet teen to jump from fright. Storms scared him, they had ever since he could remember.

Plip-plop, plip-plop.

Rain started to fall from the darkened sky and fell to the city below causing small puddles form due from the heaviness from it. Sora almost immediately flipped the hood connected to his cloak over his head to take cover from the rain. The water did not absorb into the fabric, thankfully. It just ran off it and down to the ground.

**You don't seem to be able to see souls yet and you haven't gained your destined-weapon either. You need the power to fight, would you like to try the test to gain the power?**

The cloaked teen wasn't sure what the voice was talking about but getting a 'destined-weapon' sounded cool and power too. Who wouldn't want a special power?

"Ok, I'll take your little test but on one condition." Sora replied, pausing for emphasis. "After it's done you have to explain a few things to me."

He also wanted to wake up in the real world to tell Riku and Roxas that he was alright but he didn't '

**I'll answer what I can for our time is short. I can only speak to you for so long and the two souls that are with you might break our connection at any second. For this reason, I will pause time here and they will be frozen wherever they are too.**

A brilliant flash of purple light lit up the area causing Sora to shield his eyes with his hands. When the light faded everything had indeed stopped. Rain-drops stayed suspended in the air all around the city and clouds above were unmoving too. Sora seemed to be the only thing that could actually move around while everything thing else had ceased theirs.

'_So Vanitas and Remnant are now frozen too? I hope it doesn't hurt them.' _Sora thought, slightly worried for the wellbeing of the fiends that followed him around. Why were they not here in this world? Could they not enter dreams?

**And now, onto the test which will decide your fate…**

Before Sora could even react, darkness formed around him and he sunk into it as if it were some kind of portal. Maybe it was. He struggled against the tendrils of darkness that had wrapped around his body, pulling him in deeper and deeper. Fighting it was no use, he couldn't break free.

**Do not be afraid of the darkness. Let it take hold, relax. As long as you keep your heart strong then you cannot be harmed by it.**

Sora somehow listened in his state of panic and took in a deep breath and eased into the darkness's embrace, trusting the voice and its many words of wisdom.He hoped that he wouldn't regret trusting the unknown speaker later on but for now he had to. What other option did he have? The voice served as a very helpful guide for him in this odd place that was supposedly a dream or as the voice said: a world for lost souls. What were lost souls in the first place? How did one get lost and how could they be found?

**So many questions, so little time…**

It made the brunet tense back up when he heard the speaker say that. Could they read what he was thinking? If so then just who were they? Another spirit?

His vision darkened and he suddenly felt a falling sensation before he let his eyelids slide closed. He would get answers later, he was sure of it.

Riku and Roxas stood back as they watched a group of people in white gowns gather Sora up and put him in a stretcher, being careful not to drop him or shake him.

"He will be ok." A female voice said so suddenly that it caused the two teens to jump.

They turned to find Namine near them, her eyes staying on the brunet with a distant look that she seemed to wear often on her face. "He is just finding his way."

Before Riku and Roxas could ask what she meant she walked out of their room and was gone just as soon as she had come.

The medics picked up the stretcher and begun to walk out of the room but Roxas stopped them. "We're coming too!" He said, giving them a challenging look.

The people seemed hesitant but Riku cast them a rather intimating glare that sent chills down their spines. "Is there a problem with us coming?" He asked, narrowing his sea-coloured eyes.

"No." The man in charge muttered. "By all means come along."

Both teens smirked in victory but their expressions converted back to worry for Sora. He had passed out so suddenly and it seemed very strange. All he did was touch the mirror. That meant a lot more than Riku and Roxas knew. Touching the mirror had opened a special void in Sora's very soul that was supposed to be opened, not locked like it had been for so many years. But then again, if it had remained closed than Sora may or may not have been better off. He couldn't avoid his destiny now though, or his fate that was yet to be decided.

**AC: Ansem's eyes are infact more orange than golden like the other 'Xehanorts'. **

**Anyways, I finally got KH CoM in the mail but it came from America so it doesn't work in my ps2! Depressing, I know. It's the only KH game I need to complete my collection (not counting the final mixes). **

**And I just watched all of the scenes from Final Fantasy Crisis Core! ZACK! Oh poor Zack! And Cloud too! Wahhh! If I could cry then I would have just watching it all. I came close to crying though.**

**And I know that the names Namine and Saix have the little dot things on them but I don't know how to get them on my laptop.**


	6. Worrying Friends

**Insanity Mixed With Reality**

**SoRiku, AkuRoku, VanVen, slight SoRoku, (pairings will become vital later on)**

**Disclaimer: Me no own KH or Final Fantasy, you no ask please**

**Summary: Sora sees things that other people can't. He sees creatures with black bodies and yellow eyes and two guys who won't leave him alone, Vanitas and Remnant. Soon, he gets sent to a special school for troubled teens and meets Riku and Roxas who have their own problems. Add Repliku and Ventus into the mix and then you've got an epic story!**

**A/N: I can't wait until the later chapters! I have a lot planned. For now though I need to write filler chapters until I can get to the good stuff. Read, review and smile!**

**Sorry if there are grammar mistakes, I'm not perfect and it would be boring if I was. **

"Speech" _'Thoughts' ___**'**Speech of the spirits (Van, Rem, Rep, etc)' _Memories and dreams " ' _**Voice**

**WARNINGS 4 chapter: The usual.**

**Chapter 6: Worrying Friends **

Riku and Roxas sat on a very worn-down sofa next to a white sheeted bed that Sora was currently lying in, completely dead to the world. He wasn't actually dead, he looked it though since his skin had paled and his breaths came out in short rasps. It really was traumatizing just looking at him in his current condition.

A nurse came into the bland, white room with a clipboard in her hand and a pen in the other. Her brown hair was done in a plat that went down to her back and she wore red and pink.

"Oh dear, your friend does not look well." She said as she came over to examine the unconscious student while writing things down.

"He fainted in our room for no reason nurse-"

"Aerith." The woman told Roxas. "My name is Aerith."

The golden haired teen nodded and fell silent, watching as the lady took down quite a few notes of Sora's condition.

"He will be ok, won't he?" Riku asked in a demanding manner. He wanted answers and he wanted them now!

Aerith turned to the two and smiled kindly, putting them at ease. "I'm sure that he will be. This has happened before after-all and he pulled through last time."

Riku and Roxas raised an eyebrow. What did she mean by last time? Sora only just started at the school just like them.

The brown-haired nurse sighed but answered what they were thinking anyway. "Every student that goes here came with a report about past experiences, medical history and mental problems. You two also have one just like Sora. But before you pry any further I have to stop you. All the reports are private and what is written on them is not something that students are allowed to see due to privacy laws." She told them before turning back to Sora. "When he wakes up, you two should ask him yourselves. I can't tell you anything that he does not wish to have shared."

Even if she wanted to, she couldn't.

Riku and Roxas slumped in defeat and stayed silent as she carried out her work.

'I think that Sora is really important to you, huh?' Ventus said, his voice easing Roxas's nerves. 'You two seem to be friends already much like when you first met Axel. I am really proud of you for making more friends and I guess you consider Riku a friend too. Maybe even those girls that you met earlier as well.'

Roxas couldn't argue with that. Ventus was right and making new friends was nice but he couldn't help but feel wary. Whenever something good happens then something bad was sure to follow.

'Do you think that maybe… I could be your friend too?'

That question really struck him. Ven was asking for them to be friends? But he was a spirit, an illusion! Could he really have friends like a normal human being?

'_Of course Ventus. I thought that we already were.' _Roxas said mentally.

Ventus helped convince him at times not to do stupid things or act rashly. He also talked to Roxas late at night whenever he got lonely or couldn't sleep. It had been that way ever since Ventus had become a part of Roxas, a helpful voice inside his head. He had never questioned it.

Riku and Roxas snapped to attention when the door suddenly burst open and three familiar girls burst in. Well, Namine casually walked in but that was besides from the point.

Kairi and Xion rushed over to where Sora lay with worry written all over their faces while Namine came over to Roxas and sat down next to him, a notepad and a box of crayons in her hands.

She opened the book and started sketching away and Roxas had to admit, she was _very _good at using crayons instead of actual pencils.

"Is he going to die miss? Please don't let him die!" Kairi exclaimed, her cobalt eyes wide and looking at Aerith, demanding for answers as Riku had been just minutes before.

The nurse shook her head. "No, don't worry. Your friend will be fine."

Kairi and Xion looked relieved to no end.

'Wow, so many people fussing over one person. You really have some competition.' Repliku told Riku who ignored him as usual.

"I'm going to go and get something to drink." Roxas said before he stood up.

"Oh, I'll come too." Xion said as she walked with the blonde-haired teen out of the door, closing it behind them.

"Riku, what happened?! He was fine before!" Kairi said, rushing over to Riku as if he had all the answers. Maybe he did, maybe he didn't. "Namine told us that he was being sent here but she didn't tell us why so we came as fast as we could!" Her cheeks were red from her rushed speech.

The blonde-haired girl rolled her eyes knowing that Kairi always over-reacted to situations like these. She always freaked and normally Xion had to calm her down but now that she was gone then Riku would have to because Namine sure as hell wasn't going to. Drawing was more important anyway.

Meanwhile, Roxas and Xion came to a vending machine and put some munny in and waited until they heard their purchased drinks drop before pulling a can each out of the slot.

"Hey Roxas and-" Immediately a glare was directed at the black-haired girl. "Xion."

Axel walked over and did little to hide his dislike for the girl which Roxas quickly picked up on. "Oh, hey Axel. Is there a problem?" He asked as if he didn't even notice. It was hard not to.

Xion wasn't sure why the red-haired guy was giving her funny looks but she didn't appreciate it. What had she done to piss him off anyway? She hardly even knew the guy. Roxas said that his name was Axel so he obviously knew him.

"Problem? No, there is no problem at all." Axel through gritted teeth.

"What are those on your face? Are those tattoos?" Xion asked, her sapphire eyes looking over the guy's face.

Axel looked taken-aback by the fact that not even Roxas had asked about them but _she _had. Had Roxas even noticed them before? That hurt Axel a little bit but he didn't show it.

"Yeah, they are real, legit tattoos."

Roxas seriously had not noticed them before but who could blame him? It wasn't like he kept track of every little change that Axel made to appearance.

'You are not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed. You noticed the roman numerals but not something as simple as tattoos? That is cold.' Ven commented.

'_Oh quiet you. Did you notice the tattoos?' _Roxas inwardly asked.

'…' There was no answer.

'_Ha! Just like I thought!'_

"Enough jabber. We should go back and check on Sora, Xion." Roxas told the girl.

She nodded. "Right and make sure that Kairi hasn't gone loco over his condition."

Axel frowned and stood in their path, preventing them from going on any further. "Sora? What happened to him?" He asked, slightly worried. He liked the cheerful brunet, he was fun to talk to.

"He passed out a few minutes ago. The nurse said he will be fine but he… Just come along." Roxas said.

In the depths of Sora's mind he felt an odd tingling sensation and he also couldn't work out why he felt like he was falling.

Soon, his eyes opened and he gasped when he realized that he actually was falling! Everywhere he could see there was darkness and it frightened him. What was happening? Was he dying in the _real _world?

He flipped his body around so he was falling front-first into the dark abyss that seemed to go on forever. He looked down at where he was falling and he was relieved to see something round that was coloured instead of the endless black everywhere else. His cloak fluttered and flapped around as he fell and he felt a sudden thrill of the sensation. This was kind of fun!

Below was some kind of rounded platform that seemed to be mostly blue. It reminded Sora of a stained glass window for some reason and he focused on it as he fell, now falling head-first.

What was the image on it that wasn't completely blue? A person or something?

As he came closer he could make out more and more features of the platform and his eyes widened as he came to the sudden realization; _'The person looks like me only in odd clothing!'_

And it was him wearing red, black and white. He also seemed to be wearing really large, yellow shoes.

"I don't understand, what is this place?" He whispered.

**Your station of awakening… Your heart is still sleeping…**

"What? I seriously do not understand what you are trying to tell me. How can my heart be asleep? That's crazy."

**You will understand… soon…**

Sora sighed in defeat knowing that the voice wasn't going to give him a straight answer anytime soon. It would be nice if he actually knew where the hell he was.

**Look at the circles, why are they blank?**

Sapphire eyes scanned the platform that he was falling towards and he soon spotted a few big circles that the voice wanted him to look at. All they had in them were hearts and that was it.

"How are they blank?" Sora asked, raising an eyebrow. They had hearts in them so they were certainly not blank.

**Those circles represent your circle of friends, those bonded to you. **

"But I have friends so they shouldn't be blank, right?"

**Yes but what I am trying to say is that you must become even closer to those around you. I've looked into your heart, where we are now, and I have found out that your strength comes from those around you. Your friends give you strength and power. In order to use that power though you must strengthen your ties with other people. Once you have done that then I will grant you your destined weapon or it will come to you automatically if you are in danger in this world. **

**You still have time, the door is still shut.**

Sora gasped as blinding white light enveloped everything in his field of vision and that included the blue platform and the darkness.

**And remember… You are the one who will open the door.**

"But wh-"

Before Sora could finish his sentence the light faded and cleared to reveal a room full of familiar people, all looking at him with surprised expressions.

The walls of the room were white and so were the sheets of the bed that he was in so he guessed that he was either in a hospital or the sick room. He assumed that the lady dressed in red and pink was a nurse and she looked nice enough.

"Sora!" A mixture of voices said, saying the same word.

Everyone rushed over to his bedside and he wondered how long he had been out. Slowly he matched the names with the faces in his head of everyone around him and he mentally read over them. _'Riku, Roxas, Axel, Kairi, Xion and Namine. Were they all worried about me? All I did was fall asleep, right? They are acting like I nearly died or something.'_

"You are ok? I told you that he would be fine Namine!" Kairi exclaimed, glaring at her sister who retorted, "Actually, I told you."

"Stop bickering you two! You're giving him a headache!" Xion said, telling them off.

"Roxas worried about you none stop, kid. Poor guy would have snapped if you didn't wake up when you did." Axel said, only to receive a kick in the knee from a very pissed off blonde. "Shut up! I was not freaking out!"

Riku rolled his eyes but chuckled as Sora started to grin. "You really scared me and everyone else." The silver-haired teen told him. "I'm glad that you pulled through like Aerith said you would."

Sora raised an eyebrow but Riku interrupted him by saying, "The nurse."

"Oh."

The two looked at everyone else only to find the three sisters arguing and Roxas trying to hit Axel over the head with broom that he found while the brown-haired nurse tried to stop him.

"I really made a bunch of colourful friends." Sora said, a content smile gracing his lips.

"Me too and you're not going to get rid of us anytime soon." Riku replied as he sat down on the bed near Sora's feet.

In the mirror above the sink was Vanitas and Remnant. They were both a bit dizzy but fine.

'What happened?' Remnant said with a groan. He felt really stiff and it was as if he had been in the same position for ages.

'I'm not sure. I bet it has something to do with that brat.' Vanitas replied, his golden eyes boring holes into Sora's head who didn't even seem to notice with all his new friends around.

'He hardly even looks at us anymore. Are we going to fade away again?' The white-haired spirit asked, his green eyes filled with angst. Being a lost soul wasn't fun. All you got to do was float around in the real world and be a ghost, watching the world go by for eternity. That is until your soul found peace or a Wayfinder.

'No, at least I won't.' Vanitas snapped sharply. There was no way that he was going to go back to being a ghost that no normal person could see. Sure it had been enjoyable to start with since you got to float around and go through walls but over time it got really bland and boring beyond belief. But Vanitas and Remnant couldn't really do that since they were confined to staying in mirrors and reflections for a reason that they had yet to find out. Most spirits go crazy over time and become creatures so unlike their original selves. Vanitas had tried to find peace but he had no memories of his past life before his death and that was the same for Remnant. They happened to meet one day in the same mirror and stumbled upon an old Wayfinder who they fought over at first. The person killed themselves though, they couldn't handle dealing with Vanitas's and Remnant's constant bickering and bullying. That's why Sora was so important. He could actually be their last chance. If they failed this time then they were sure to turn into a monster of some kind with no sane thoughts at all, not that they were completely sane to begin with but that was besides from the point.

Sora had no idea how important he was or even what he was and the two spirits were going to keep it that way. There was no way that they were going to let him hold an advantage over them.

Below the school were a variety of large rooms, all with different uses. Some rooms served as holding cells and a fell contained students that had been unluckily enough to stumble upon the place. Some of the kids had experiments performed on them which resulted in mutating quite a few of them into beasts who could hardly be called human.

In a lab was a man who served as the school's science teacher. He had long, dirty blonde hair and he wore a white lab coat. He was mixing together different materials and potions together to create a special type of drug that his Superior had asked him to create along with the principal.

"Vexen, the special holding cells are fixed and ready." Zexion said as he came into the room. He wore casual clothes and was a student. Branded into his clothing and Vexen's lab coat were numeral numbers that Roxas and Riku had started to become suspicious about.

"Excellent. Tell Xemnas that I'll have the drug perfected by tomorrow and ready for testing." The scientist declared. "We will be able to start Project Reanimation soon, very soon."

**A/N: Just saw Final Fantasy Advent Children. It was an awesome movie and I suggest that you guys watch it! It took ages for me to find it and watch it but it was worth it.**

**Anyways, the story is really starting to pick up and special guests will be coming into the story too. **** And the funny thing is that this story was supposed to be a lot darker and not happy at all. All well, what can I do? Depressing stories don't seem to be as fun to write.**


	7. Reminiscing Times

**Insanity Mixed With Reality**

**Or is it Reality Mixed With Insanity? (:**

**SoRiku, AkuRoku, VanVen, slight SoRoku, (pairings will become vital later on)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own much. I do own a bunch of video games and fanfics though. **

**Summary: Sora sees things that other people can't. He sees creatures with black bodies and yellow eyes and two guys who won't leave him alone, Vanitas and Remnant. Soon, he gets sent to a special school for troubled teens and meets Riku and Roxas who have their own problems. Add Repliku and Ventus into the mix and then you've got an epic story!**

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who has faved this story and to all the people who I have gotten reviews from no matter how short. Here is everyone who has reviewed (since I last checked):**

**TheAnnoyingVoice, bookgirl111, Lime Gap, DecidedFate13, X-blade025 and Riilustra -Your Sweetest SIN.**

**Just review to add your name to the list and please share your thoughts and opinions (as long as you don't bash Sora)! **

**Anyways, here is another chapter (with more Ven)! **

**Review for a happy Ventus.**

**Flame for a pissed Vanitas who will hunt you down.**

"Speech" _'Thoughts' ___**'**Speech of the spirits (Van, Rem, Rep, etc)' _Memories and dreams " ' _**Voice**

**WARNINGS 4 chapter: The usual stuff, duh.**

**Chapter 7: Reminiscing Times**

Night-time eventually came after Sora woke up in the sick room and he was ordered (more like asked) by Aerith to stay in the bland room for the night so she could make sure that he was fine. Riku stayed as well and no-one commented when he shot everyone glares.

So tonight, Roxas was alone. Axel had offered that he go stay with him but Roxas declined the invitation—after calling Axel a pervert—and now he was in a dark room, all alone.

'Maybe you should turn a light on.'

Wait, he wasn't alone.

'It might brighten the room up quite a bit unless if you like it dark… That's ok too I guess.'

He was never alone because Ventus was always with him. Why was that again? He had never actually out-right asked him that. It didn't seem very polite.

Roxas sighed and didn't bother to turn on the lights. He knew his way around the room so it wasn't very likely that he would trip over anything.

He made it over to his bed and sat on it. Swinging his legs over the side he asked out loud, "Ventus, what are you?"

'A spirit I guess or a lost soul that got found. There really isn't much of a difference.'

Woah. So the friendly, disemboweled voice was actually a ghost? That was pretty damn cool.

Roxas lay back on the bed and folded his arms behind his head to serve as a pillow and his sapphire eyes looked blankly at the roof that he could hardly see in all the darkness.

"So then, you are dead? That's… That's so sad."

'Not really. It would be sad if I could actually remember how I died. And besides, how can I be sad if I've got you, a Wayfinder, to help me?'

Wayfinder? What in the world was a Wayfinder?

"Ven, please explain to me what a Wayfinder is because I have no idea what you are talking about."

There was a short pause before Ventus replied in a surprised tone, 'Huh? You don't know what you are? Ok… I guess I'll tell you then.'

Roxas hoped that a Wayfinder wasn't something bad that would doom him for eternity. That would be annoying. More annoying than even Axel and that was a great feat.

'I don't know all the details but I picked up from other spirits that there are special humans in this world that can guide lost souls to find peace or even better; bring them back to life! That hasn't happened for years though and for a long time the spirits thought that all the Wayfinders had died out. Luckily I managed to find you!'

That memory was as clear as day to Ventus and it was considered very important to him.

_Ventus sighed as he floated around Twilight Town. He wasn't like common spirits because his form was not of a person but of a ball of light. He could fly around but he couldn't walk, only roll and that wasn't as enjoyable as it sounded. He often wondered why his soul had taken this form and not that of an actual person like he wanted. He couldn't even remember what he looked like either and it saddened him deeply. _

_Ventus whizzed through and past people as he explored the town, trying to find a purpose or something that interested him. Normally he avoided going through people because it felt really weird and strange. It also was not very polite to do such a thing._

'_I wonder if ghosts can die?' He either thought or said. He could no longer tell the difference between speaking and thinking._

_While he was so focused on that one question he darted through an alley and accidently went through a random boy with blonde hair. The boy he had gone through suddenly looked sick and he leaned against the wall and slowly slid down it while holding a box in his arms. _

'_What the…?' Ven said before he came over to inspect the boy. Had he felt him go through him? No, that was impossible._

'_Must just be a coincidence or something. People get sick all the time.'_

_Ventus let out a sigh and floated away as soon as someone with red hair came. 'I shouldn't let my hopes get up so easily.'_

_Ventus found the boy again a few days later walking with the boy with red hair that he had seen coming over to him._

_They were both walking together through the near-empty town late at night._

"_So if you don't pay your rent by tomorrow then you will be kicked out on the streets? That's pretty rough, especially for someone who is only nine." The red-haired boy said who didn't look that much older than the other boy._

"_Ten." The blonde corrected. "And I'm fine with living on the streets… again. I've done it before so I can do it again. It really isn't that hard."_

'_He seems pretty intelligent for his age.' Ven commented. Somehow, the two boys interested him so he floated above them and listened in on their conversation._

"_Roxas… Why don't I pay the rent for you? I've got some munny to spare." _

"_Axel, I can't ask you to do that."_

_So that's what their names were. The one with blonde hair was Roxas and the other one was Axel. Very intriguing indeed._

_The red-haired boy stopped and after a few more steps the blonde did as well. He turned and looked at Axel with questioning eyes._

"_Then how about you come stay with me."_

"_W-What? I hardly even know you!"_

"_Then it's settled, let's go pack your bags!"_

"_I never agreed to-"_

_Axel took one of Roxas's hands in his and practically dragged him through the town with a gleeful look in his eyes._

_If balls of light could smile then Ventus defiantly was and he was laughing too, actually laughing! He hadn't laughed for who-knows how long and it felt very good and it gave him a happy feeling. Maybe he would follow around Roxas and Axel for a while longer just for laughs._

_A month or so later, Roxas started to act oddly. At random times his eyes would scan the room and try to find something that obviously wasn't there. He acted like he was being watched but that was crazy; Ventus knew that humans couldn't sense spirits._

_Amazingly, Roxas was still sharing an apartment with Axel and they had managed quite well together. Ventus disapproved of the two of them for not having on adult to look after them since they were still young but they seemed to be getting by quite well. Axel got paid for doing random jobs in the town and Roxas sometimes joined him to carry out the jobs more efficiently. But more than anything; it killed the boredom of doing nothing._

_Ven watched as Roxas sat down on the couch and started flipping through a gamer magazine. He seemed to be a bit on edge though, especially since Axel was out._

"_Uhh… Is someone… there?" He asked, mentally hitting himself. Of course there wasn't anyone else there, he was the only one in the room!_

_Ventus remained silent, not sure if Roxas meant him or was just going crazy._

"_I'm such an idiot, as if I would get a response." Roxas muttered._

'_Do you mean me?' The sphere of light asked. There was nothing wrong with trying, it's not as if anyone could hear him anyway._

_The blonde-haired boy froze and his breathing stopped. Did he just…?_

'_Hey, you can die if you hold your breath for too long… Not that you can hear me anyway…' Ven said, worried about the human who he had been following around for a little while now._

_Roxas, much to Ven's surprise, took his tip and started breathing again though he only took the oxygen in with shaky breaths._

"_Are you a g-ghost?" Roxas asked shakily, wide-eyed._

_Ventus floated over closer and he was rather curious. Could the human actually hear him or was it just another common coincidence? 'Yeah, I guess I am a ghost.' He replied._

_The blonde-haired boy dropped his magazine, now sure that he wasn't going crazy. Was hearing things considered crazy? He hoped not because he wasn't sure if Axel would let him stay if he was. But then again; Axel seemed to have an obsession with fire and burning stuff._

'_You can hear me, can't you?' Ven asked._

_Roxas nodded his head and he trembled. He couldn't even see the ghost he was talking to so of course he was afraid of it. Did it come to haunt him or use his body for something evil? Yeah, he had been watching too many old horror movies over the past week. _

'_Great! Can you please help me then? I need a place to stay and I don't even have a proper body. Pretty much I look like an over-sized bowling ball and if I can stay with you, in your body then I will get to feel what it is like to walk again.' Ventus said, his words rushed due to how excited he was._

"How does someone become a Wayfinder in the first place?" Roxas asked, interrupting Ven's reminiscing over their meeting and joining.

'I don't know… Wayfinders cannot be made, only born. It doesn't necessarily run through the family, or at least I don't think so…' Ven said.

It took ages for him to convince Roxas of letting him enter his body but he was ever so grateful. At first Roxas had been annoyed by them sharing a body since he kept mentally hearing Ven's thoughts but he eventually got used to it and they now shared a mental link.

Roxas actually found Ventus to be very informative and he had a lot of knowledge about a variety of things. He also had a knack for persuading Roxas not to do something stupid or to do something that would benefit the both of them like eating ice-cream. Through Roxas, Ven could taste whatever it was that his vessel was eating, hearing and feeling. This meant that he could tap into Roxas's emotions and inner thoughts whenever he liked but he preferred not to do that, it was an invasion of privacy after-all and Ven didn't want to intrude any more than he already was with the body-sharing and all. He hoped that one day he could find peace or get his own body which wasn't very likely of happening anytime soon.

"Is it lonely… Being a ghost I mean…" Roxas asked quietly.

'Sometimes,' Ven said before pausing. 'But I've got you now and I feel a pinch of what you do.'

The blonde looked saddened by this answer. Being a spirit was harder than he gave Ventus credit for and he realized that now. He wondered how long Ven floated around the world with no purpose before he found him. It was a wonder that he too hadn't gone crazy like the ghosts that he heard Ven telling him about in stories and losing all of your memories from your past life before you died had to be hard too.

"Ventus, I am going to do everything in my power to help you. Just tell me what I have to do and will do it." Roxas said with such determination that Ven was sure that he wasn't going to fail. "I promise."

And Roxas always kept his promises.

Ventus suddenly felt a warm feeling shock through his spiritual self and he somehow knew that the feeling wasn't from Roxas's heart but his own. Did he actually still have a heart?

Before the spirit could reply or even comprehend what was happening, he felt his spiritual self being sucked out of Roxas and into the real world. The sensation was painful for both of them and Roxas yelped in pain. What the hell was going on?!

At some time during this, Roxas blacked out and lay unconscious on his bed. Ventus, however, screamed in pain as his soul tore out of his vessel's body. This didn't last very long though because he too, somehow, fell into unconsciousness.

When Roxas stirred from his sleep the first thing he saw when he woke up was a mirror reflection of himself. A see-through and slightly different mirror reflection. Wait…

'Roxas, are you alright?' His reflection asked with a voice that sounded a lot like Ven's.

Wait a second… It was Ven and not his mirror reflection after all! Why did they look similar though? They was probably a side-effect of Ventus being taken out of his body.

"I'm fine… I think." Roxas replied as he sat up.

Ventus floated down to sit next to him and he had a silly smile on his face that briefly reminded him of Sora. The spirit wasn't wearing the same clothes as Roxas. He wore a green shirt and simple, blue jeans and lastly, a band with a checker print rested on both wrists.

'I have my own body though I am still a spirit! Thank you so much Roxas, I really owe you.' Ven said, his sapphire eyes shining with happiness and joy.

"Are… Are you going to leave me now?" Roxas whispered, afraid of what the spirit's answer was going to be.

Ventus shook his head furiously. "No, no, no! Why would I do that? I might have a bodily form now but I'm not complete." He grinned. "Besides, you're my friend and I will never ever abandon you. How would you get by without me anyway?"

He was sure that Roxas would do something dangerous the moment that he left anyway and he wanted to be there to guide him to do the right things and be more responsible. Half of the time though, Roxas ignored him.

Meanwhile, in the infirmary (or sick room, it doesn't really make a difference)…

Sora was sitting up in his bed and he was chatting away with Riku who sat cross-legged at the other end of the bed. Both were talking in hushed tones due to the late hour and they could hardly see one-another in the darkness though they could make out each-others shapes.

"The night after my tenth birthday had been the scariest moment of my life 'cause that's when Vanitas, the spirit that follows me around, made his first appearance along with a couple of little monsters that I nicknamed Heartless." Sora explained, all too aware of the golden eyes that were glaring at him from the little mirror above the sink a distance away. Vanitas eyes glowed in the dark and it creeped Sora out quite a bit. He could briefly make out emerald eyes looking his way too but Remnants eyes were far less scary than Vanitas's.

"Wow, I had no idea. Can you see him now and the Heartless?" Riku asked curiously.

The brunet nodded, though Riku couldn't really see it, and he said, "I can't see the Heartless since they.. Actually, I'm not sure where they are. Anyway, I can see Vanitas looking at me right now from the mirror over there along with Remnants, the other spirit stalking me. Their eyes glow in the darkness which repeatedly scares me every time that I forget that they can do that."

Riku listened to Sora's rambling and he didn't once interrupt. He actually found it rather interesting and the fact that the two spirits called Vanitas and Remnant could only appear in mirrors intrigued him and Repliku. Ansem wasn't around at the moment so he was probably sleeping somewhere or found something far more interesting. Unlike Repliku, the man could go as far from Riku as he wanted since for some reason they were not connected. Vanitas and Remnant seemed connected to Sora, assuming that the brunet was not in fact crazy and had the same condition as him.

Maybe they were bound to Sora and could not help but follow him? Riku was right about this theory, though he didn't know it yet. Vanitas and Remnant could not ditch Sora, they could only move around freely in the world beyond mirrors which was a very small space, mind you.

After Sora finished talking Riku asked, "Can Vanitas and Remnant enter your body?"

"Nope, they are stuck behind mirrors and reflections. They cannot touch me." Sora said, shaking his head. He sounded a bit nervous though but who could blame him? The two spirits being talked about were glaring at him not too far away and he was sure that they didn't appreciate being talked about to someone else.

Riku found one of Sora's hands despite the darkness and he took it in one of his own and squeezed it reassuringly. "You will be fine and besides, I will always be here to protect you. Roxas as well."

But how could he protect Sora when he couldn't even see what he was trying to protect him from or hear them for that matter?

'You can't always be there for him. One day he will get in a bad situation and you will not be able to be there to aid him.' Repliku said, darkening Riku's mood.

"Hey, are you ok? You seem to be… cold all of the sudden." Sora said which made the silver-haired teen raise an eyebrow. How could he tell what he was feeling? For the time being though, he decided to ignore it.

"I'm ok. It's just that my own spirit, Repliku is pissing me off. I can't see him but I can hear him and he is annoying to no end. Ansem, my other spirit, can be seen and he is just as annoying."

"Oh! I'll protect you from them as well, that way we can both be there for each-other!" Sora exclaimed as if it was the most brilliant idea in the whole world.

Riku chuckled and a smile made his way on his face. "It's a promise then. We will both protect one-another from now on."

And he deeply hoped that he could keep that promise.

**A/N: Yay, Venny gets a body and there's a small development in the SoRiku part of the story*cheers* Review please and share your thoughts or else Ven will get sad.**

**Ven: *sniff* Please review *sniff***

**Van: Are you crying?**

**Ven: No! *sob* I have allergies!**

**Van: That doesn't explain why you are crying though.**


	8. Always Watching

**Insanity Mixed With Reality**

**Or is it Reality Mixed With Insanity? **

**SoRiku, AkuRoku, VanVen, slight SoRoku, (pairings will become vital later on)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own much. I do own a bunch of video games and fanfics though. **

**Summary: Sora sees things that other people can't. He sees creatures with black bodies and yellow eyes and two guys who won't leave him alone, Vanitas and Remnant. Soon, he gets sent to a special school for troubled teens and meets Riku and Roxas who have their own problems. Add Repliku and Ventus into the mix and then you've got an epic story!**

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who has faved this story and to all the people who I have gotten reviews from no matter how short. Here is everyone who has reviewed (since I last checked):**

**TheAnnoyingVoice, bookgirl111, Lime Gap, DecidedFate13, X-blade025, Riilustra -Your Sweetest SIN and SoraAoNoHikari**

**Just review to add your name to the list and please share your thoughts and opinions (as long as you don't bash Sora)! **

**Review for a happy Ventus.**

**Flame for a pissed Vanitas who will hunt you down.**

**And don't worry, Lime Gap! I have not forgotten about Riku and his spirits but this chapter probably will not be about them!**

**UPDATES WILL BE SLOWER DUE TO SCHOOL!**

**And POV switches will have little symbols so people don't get confused.**

"Speech" _'Thoughts' ___**'**Speech of the spirits (Van, Rem, Rep, etc)' _Memories and dreams " ' _**Voice**

**WARNINGS 4 chapter: The usual stuff, duh.**

**Chapter 8: Always Watching**

It had been one simple task; Don't let them out of your sight. Somehow though, Zexion had failed to achieve that task and now the people who he had been watching were nowhere to be found.

Ok, let's go back a bit.

Xemnas himself had asked Zexion personally to watch over Sora, Riku and Roxas for the whole day yet he had failed that in less than an hour. How was that even possible? Did they know that they were being watched? No, how could they? Unless if Axel had told Roxas due to his bond with him…

Classes started for real today but the trio had not turned up to them yet and it was now break. Now, with the help of Axel, Zexion had to find them or else be punished by the Superior of the Organization himself.

Zexion needn't to be so worried though. The three that he was supposed to be keeping an eye on were still in their beds dreaming. What they were dreaming though was not normal, not at all.

In Sora's dream he was falling and he immediately recognized where he was, his Station of Awakening.

**There is not much time left, we need to speed up this process in order to prepare you for what lies ahead…**

Sora sighed and decided not to question the voice anymore. It never seemed to want to give him a straight answer and it only spoke in riddles.

He looked at his clothing and again he was wearing the same black cloak as before. Down below the mostly blue platform had changed slightly. Inside the circles were images of his new friends. Riku, Roxas, Axel, Kairi, Xion and even Namine were pictured within them.

**Very observant. At least you achieved that task fast enough and now we must move on. I fear that forces on the outside will interfere if we take too long and I cannot be discovered, not yet at least…**

After a while longer of falling, Sora's feet finally touched the platform and he now stood on it, his shoes making tapping noises as he walked around it, noting every detail of it as he could. Obviously it was important and the voice had once mentioned that this place was his 'heart'. What did that truly mean though? It didn't make sense at all. Why was this place so dark?

Sapphire eyes scanned out through the seemingly endless darkness but it held no clues. The only light it seemed was himself and the platform.

**Now, we must work out what your power is and your element…**

"But why? There is nothing out there that I have to fight!" Sora exclaimed, seeking answers.

The school held no dangers, did it? His spirits could not touch him and the Heartless had not appeared for some time so they held no risk.

**You will see what I mean very soon… Riku and Roxas will as well and they are what you are. All three of you are Wayfinders yet none of you are the same, not entirely. I fear that fate has bound you all together yet there is no clear reason as to why.**

Suddenly, shadows started to form all around Sora. Dark shapes started to come out of them with hollow, yellow eyes.

**The worlds of Reality and Insanity needs a defender for its light is fading. There are people out there that wish your world and the spirit world to be plunged into darkness and to be theirs. You and your friends must stop this. We are all depending on you, Sora. Please do not fail us…**

Sora realized that the creatures forming out of the shadows were Heartless, the things that seemed to stalk him via the shadows. Why were they here of all places though? It didn't make sense! None of this made any sense at all!

**And remember…**

The brunet took a step back from the creatures that kept coming closer and closer to him. He backpedalled when one jumped at him and he kept backing away until he came to the edge of his Station of Awakening. He couldn't go back, who knows if he would die if he just jumped off yet he couldn't go forward either.

Sora held his arms in front of his face as a last act to defend himself from the sharp claws of the Heartless. Was he going to die now, had the voice planned this?

**You are the one who will open the door.**

Riku had no idea where he was, not in the slightest. From what he could tell though was that he was walking on a path that led somewhere. Around the path was only a swirling mass of darkness that would not go away. He had decided to just walk on the path, it seemed to be the safest option anyway.

For some reason that was beyond his comprehension he wore a black cloak which he had to admit, it was pretty weird. Despite that he didn't much mind it. Black suited him anyway.

'Do you even know where you are going?' The oh so familiar voice of a certain annoying spirit asked.

Riku jumped though because it had surprised him. He didn't remember his spirits being able to enter his dreams unless if this was not a dream at all.

'Oh, but this is _far _from a dream.'

The silver-haired teen jumped when a person that looked a lot like him appeared before him, blocking the path ahead. He could not go forward nor could he go back. There was no running away from the person either since behind him, the darkness had swallowed up the path and he had no intention of going through it.

The doppelganger had the same hair, same eyes, same build but he was slightly taller and his platinum was tied back with a strip of black fabric. Did he not like to have his hair in his face?

'We finally meet at last, face-to-face.' They said. 'I am Repliku or to you I am. That is not my real name you see.'

Riku frowned at this. Why would the spirit lie about his own name? It didn't really make any sense. He was going to ask him about it but 'Repliku' interrupted him by saying, 'It seems that how I died was traumatic because I have no memories of my past or a name. I had to call myself something and Repliku sounded fitting enough because I'm like a replica of you.'

It was true that they looked the same but they didn't act that way. Repliku was the cunning type while Riku tended to be the cold and quiet type.

'Anyway, why I am here is to help you out with this task. I'm only here to help you gain your destined weapon and elemental powers and that's it. I am sure that we will see Ansem soon as well because this seems like the kind of place that he would enjoy hanging out.'

"What is this place anyway?" Riku asked, extremely anxious. All the darkness was starting to make him feel ill and for some reason, he could smell an odd stench in the air. Darkness didn't have a certain scent, did it?

'Hell if I know. All I was told was to give you my assistance, nothing else. But… I might have an idea of where we are. Maybe if we find some more clues of our location then I might be able to work it out.' Repliku said, his aquamarine eyes darting around the area before resting back on Riku. 'Come on, the voice told us to hurry.'

'Found you…' A creepy voice said from behind Riku.

Repliku looked pissed and he glared at the man behind the Wayfinder. Why was _he _here? _He _wasn't supposed to be!

"Ansem." Riku said coldly before he turned around to face the dark-skinned man.

"Where the fuck am I?" Roxas asked as he turned around, his head moving to allow him to glance in every direction possible.

Somehow, the blonde had ended up waking up in some weird city with no other people around. Where was everyone? Did anyone even live here? Did something happen to them?

A huge skyscraper was behind him and it was the brightest light source that he could find. For this reason, he was staying close to it and using it as a guide so he wouldn't get himself lost in the seemingly endless lots of buildings.

Roxas wore a black cloak that he found to be very comfortable. Despite the comfort it provided, the clothing failed to keep him warm and he kept shivering from time to time.

'Roxas, I know where we are.' Ventus appeared next to blonde and he had a worried expression on his face. It was obvious that he wasn't very fond of this place. 'We are in the World That Never Was, a parallel world to yours that is for spirits and otherworldly beings.' He had been here before but it was a brief visit. Everyone who dies comes to this world before heading to the human world or to pass on to the next life.

Roxas didn't jump when the ghost appeared, he was used to jump scares from the video-games he had been playing recently so he hardly ever got scared or surprised from random things that pop up suddenly.

"So then, why are you so fidgety?" He asked the spirit who seemed to be more human than ghost at the moment. Ventus's skin was not see-through and he was walking on the ground instead of hovering as he usually did with his new body.

'It's just that… This place should be full of spirits! I'm scared about what happened to everyone since they should be here. And the air feels… off.'

Roxas agreed with Ventus on his last point. He felt slightly uneasy though he couldn't work out why.

'Rox, what is that thing?' The spirit asked a few seconds later, pointing shakily at a creature that had spawned out of thin air. It was mostly white with a gaping mouth that looked like an open zip. On the top of its head was a weird, white insignia of a heart. More spawned that looked exactly like it and they moved in a way that reminded Roxas of an odd dance that consisted of jumping around like an acrobat or something.

**Nobodies…**

"Huh?" Was Roxas just going crazy or did he hear a weird voice speak to him? It didn't sound familiar nor did it sound particularly human.

'Snap out of it!' Ven exclaimed, now in front of the other blonde, shaking his shoulders frantically. 'We have to get out of here! I have a feeling that those creatures are not friendly and that they are the ones who scared everyone else away!'

It shocked Roxas for a few seconds that Ventus could even touch him. Ghosts were not supposed to be able to do that no matter how special they were. The blonde shook his head and snapped out of his thoughts, now focusing on the task at hand. The creatures, the _Nobodies _were getting closer and closer and they didn't seem to be thinking of stopping their actions anytime soon.

'_Maybe if I had a weapon…' _Roxas thought. _'Then I would be able to fight them off.'_

There was nothing around though that could pass up as a weapon so the blonde decided to flee. It was the smartest thing to do and he was sure that the strange 'things' wouldn't be able to keep up.

"Come on Ven," He said, grabbing the spirit's hand. "We are getting out of here." He acted like the idea was his but Ventus didn't mind, he just wanted to get the hell away from the scary creatures!

Roxas and Ventus soon turned and started running, hand-in-hand so neither of them would fall behind. They didn't dare look back.

**A/N: Sorry for not replying for a while! School started again and I lost my inspiration due to that! I won't leave this story though (hopefully) and I plan to update at least once or twice a week. It's better than nothing. **


	9. Gaining Something

**Insanity Mixed With Reality**

**Or is it Reality Mixed With Insanity? **

**SoRiku, AkuRoku, VanVen, slight SoRoku, (pairings will become vital later on)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own KH but I can dream.**

**SUMMARY SO FAR: After making new friends at his new school, Sora and his other two room-mates (Riku and Roxas) start experiencing some strange things to do with their spirits (who no-one else can see). Now, Sora is stuck in a place called 'Station of Awakening' said to be located in his heart. Roxas is trapped in 'The World That Never Was' along with Ventus who has gained a bodily form a little while before. Riku is in a place where there is a lot of darkness and only one path along with Repliku (who now has a body) and Ansem.**

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who has faved this story and to all the people who I have gotten reviews from no matter how short. Here is everyone who has reviewed (since I last checked):**

**TheAnnoyingVoice, bookgirl111, Lime Gap, DecidedFate13, X-blade025, Riilustra -Your Sweetest SIN, SoraAoNoHikari and Nexanda77**

**Just review to add your name to the list and please share your thoughts and opinions (as long as you don't bash Sora)! **

**Please keep reviewing, I know that some people are still reading this without reviewing. **

**Best review last chapter (since I've checked) was from X-blade025! Thanks very much!**

**UPDATES WILL BE SLOWER DUE TO SCHOOL!**

**And POV switches will have little symbols so people don't get confused.**

"Speech" _'Thoughts' ___**'**Speech of **all** spirits (Van, Rem, Rep, etc)' _Memories and dreams " ' _**Voice**

**WARNINGS 4 chapter: Stuff, stuff and more stuff! **

**Chapter 9: Gaining Something**

**And remember…**

The brunet took a step back from the creatures that kept coming closer and closer to him. He backpedalled when one jumped at him and he kept backing away until he came to the edge of his Station of Awakening. He couldn't go back, who knows if he would die if he just jumped off yet he couldn't go forward either.

Sora held his arms in front of his face as a last act to defend himself from the sharp claws of the Heartless. Was he going to die now, had the voice planned this?

**You are the one who will open the door.**

Amazingly, Sora felt no pain. Instead he felt an odd tingling sensation at his fingertips and he had no idea why. It didn't really matter though because he was going to die and no-one would even know why! He didn't want to die with people not knowing why. Besides, he still had so much to live for like his new friends, Riku and Roxas, the three sisters and Axel. Also, he was sure that Vanitas and Remnant would not be happy about him dying.

Didn't they need him for something? He suspected that they did indeed need him.

'_I can't die, not like this…' _Sora thought, his eyes staying firmly closed.

**Then how would you like to die?**

That question was so sudden.

"Surrounded by my friends or by protecting someone else." Sora replied, no wavering in his voice despite his intense fear. "If I have to sacrifice my own life to save another then I will do it in a heartbeat!"

And he would if the situation were to come.

**Sora… you have passed the second test.**

The brunet opened his sapphire eyes timidly and he lowered his arms. The Heartless were gone. "What?" And a giant key-shaped sword was resting snuggly in Sora's hands.

'Found you…' A creepy voice said from behind Riku.

Repliku looked pissed and he glared at the man behind the Wayfinder. Why was _he _here? _He _wasn't supposed to be!

"Ansem." Riku said coldly before he turned around to face the dark-skinned man.

It was indeed Ansem, Riku's second acquired spirit and the crueler of the two. He wore his usual attire which was a strange cloak that was a lot different from the one that Riku wore and Repliku.

'Ah, I found you two at last. There was a barrier keeping me out of this place but it seems that it was too weak for my powers.' The man boasted, his orange eyes switching from Repliku to Riku and then back. 'Finally, the clone meets his original.'

Repliku looked really angry now and he curled both hands into fists, gritting his teeth as he tried to suppress the urge to punch Ansem right then and there. 'I told you before; do not refer to me as an idle clone of him. We are nothing alike.'

'Ah, but you are more alike than you will admit or think.' A glimmer of menace flickered in the man's eyes. 'And connected in more ways than one.'

Riku watched their verbal exchange with a troubled expression. What did they mean? What the hell were they talking about?

He shook his head, his silver hair swaying from side-to-side. Whatever it was, he could find out later. For now he had to find out where he was and how to get out. This place made him feel weird in a bad way. It was as if he was supposed to know where he was but he couldn't for some reason.

After a while longer of listening to the two spirits bicker, Riku turned his back to them and continued on the path into the unknown.

'_I hope that I find a way out of here soon.' _He thought, his sea-coloured eyes trained straight ahead. _'I think they might drive me insane if I stay in here too long with them.'_

'Hey! Wait up!' Repliku called from behind him.

'It is rather rude to leave us behind like you are doing now.' Ansem added.

Riku didn't care about their opinions. He could do whatever the hell he wanted to!

As if on cue, the smoky darkness covered up the path ahead and Riku nearly tripped over when he suddenly halted so he would not enter the darkness. Who knew if the stuff was toxic?

'Oh, that's not good.' Repliku commented, coming over to a stop next to the Wayfinder.

Ansem chuckled and kept walking ahead and he went straight into the darkness, unafraid of it. 'Nonsense. The darkness is not to be feared by us, only by those that follow the light.' He declared.

His form could not be made out in the thick black substance but he was in there, Riku could somehow sense him in it.

Repliku sighed before he took in a big breath and ran into the darkness so bravely that Riku was astonished. He also had a newfound respect for the ghost.

'Woah, I can actually breathe! Come on Riku, are you afraid?'

Ah, now there was the Repliku that Riku had grown up to know.

"I'm not afraid of the darkness!" So then why did he just want to curl up in a ball somewhere where there was a lot of light? He did fear the darkness but this was all a stupid dream… right?

The teen chewed on his lip to calm his nerves as he slowly but surely walked into the black fog, immediately regretted going in. It felt like he was being choked by something and he found it very hard to breathe_. _His nose felt blocked as well and his fingertips were tingling like crazy.

'_Help me! Someone please get me out of here!' _He thought, desperate. _'Help…'_

A crushing force settled all around his body and he was sure that he was going to die.

Riku could no longer take the pressure on his body and he dropped to a kneeling position, wrapping his arms around his stomach. Bile rose up from his throat and it entered his mouth but he swallowed thickly and he managed to keep it down. It would probably hurt more if he vomited.

Intense fear clawed at his heart and he felt cold. Why had he trusted Ansem? He deserved this for being so stupid!

Riku closed his eyes and he hoped that somehow, someone would find him. "Sora, Roxas… Save me…" He whispered. "Someone, anyone… Please…"

After what seemed like hours of running but was actually mere minutes, Roxas and Ventus ended up at the same spot as they started at which was the brightly lit skyscraper. Had they really run in a circle? That couldn't be possible. They _had _run in a straight line after all so why did they end up where they started?

Roxas let go of the spirit's hand and he groaned. "This place is just a damn loop! No matter how far we run, we'll always end up at the same spot!" He was really frustrated now but at least the 'Nobodies' were nowhere to be seen.

Ventus shared the Wayfinder's frustration but to a much lesser extent. 'The last time I came here, the area did not repeat itself. There used to be barriers though to separate ghosts from the real world but some could get through it. Now, I feel that the barriers are still here but tampered with.' He told Roxas, a thoughtful look on his face. 'And I bet that the Memory's Skyscraper has something to do with it.'

Roxas nodded. The building did seem to be important. "Alright, let's go check it out." And he hoped that those creatures would not show up again.

Both blondes turned to the building and started walking up the stairs but they both stopped when they saw someone standing at the top of the stairs, his back to them. He seemed to have black hair that was mostly spiked at the back and he wore dark clothing. Strapped to his back was a sword and black armour was on both shoulders.

"Who are you?!" Roxas demanded, his blue eyes narrowed in suspicion. Was this guy another foe and with the Nobodies?

'Huh?' The guy uttered before he turned around, confusion written all over his face. He had blue eyes that seemed to glow in the darkness by some sort of power. 'I thought I was the only one here along with the Nobodies but now you two show up and prove me wrong.' He grinned and pointed a thumb to himself. 'I'm Zack by the way but you could just call me a hero, that works too.'

Roxas raised an eyebrow and he wondered if this guy was a bit egotistic. "Right, well I am Roxas and this is Ventus." He replied, not trusting the guy one bit.

Zack smiled and nodded before asking quite bluntly, 'You two are twins, right?'

"No!"

"No, not really."

The dark-haired male chuckled. 'Well you could have fooled me.'

After the introductions, Roxas asked Zack why he was at the Memory's Skyscrapper.

'Me? Why shouldn't I be here? The real question is why are _you _here, blondie.'

Roxas, as much as he wanted to, didn't punch the guy in the face. All he wanted was some quality answers.

'I think Roxas wants to know why only you are here and no other spirits.' Ventus cut in helpfully before his friend had a fit.

Zack crossed his arms and shook his head. 'Oh, I'm not sure where everyone else went. Maybe they found a better place to hang out like the real world or somewhere not infested with monsters because this place is practically crawling with them once you get a few riled up.' He told them.

"Why didn't you leave too?"

Zack smiled a strained smile and said, "It's complicated and who wouldn't pass up the chance to fend off a couple of monsters?"

Both blondes looked surprised and their sapphire eyes widened. "You can fight them?" They said in perfect union.

Zack nodded and he raised an eyebrow. "Yeah! Can't you guys fight them too?"

Sora nearly dropped the weapon in shock but he managed to keep his cool and hold it despite his shakiness. "What is this? Some kind of key?" He asked, eyes roaming around the black void.

**A Keyblade…**

"What is a-" His words were cut off when he heard a whispering sound at the back of his mind. It got louder and louder as he concentrated on it.

"Sora, Roxas… Save me…" The whispering said. "Someone, anyone… Please…"

'_That sounds like Riku!' _Sora thought, realization hitting him. _'I need to go help him but how? I don't even know where he is…'_

He would find Riku, he was sure of it. If he could hear him then there had to be some way to find him too. Maybe even find a way to wake up as well along the way.

**A/N: Updates are going to be weekly which means one chapter a week. This is mostly because I have sort-of gotten out of KH for the time being but don't worry because I don't plan to abandon this story! I'm also going to try working on a different story that is not KH and it might be called Better Than You or a different one that is based on Corpse Party.**


	10. Living Memories

**Insanity Mixed With Reality**

**Or is it Reality Mixed With Insanity? **

**SoRiku, AkuRoku, VanVen, slight SoRoku **

**Disclaimer: I don't own KH or Final Fantasy (which is where Zack is from) but I can dream.**

**I'm sure that you guys don't need a summary anymore :D**

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who has faved this story and to all the people who I have gotten reviews from no matter how short. Here is everyone who has reviewed (since I last checked):**

**TheAnnoyingVoice, bookgirl111, Lime Gap, DecidedFate13, X-blade025, Riilustra -Your Sweetest SIN, SoraAoNoHikari, Nexanda77 and Otaku Kid1996**

**One chapter will be posted each week but the good thing is that it will give me more time to edit the chapter. **

**Sorry for the late chapter, school has been pretty bad lately. And in this chapter there will be more about Riku's past.**

"Speech" _'Thoughts' ___**'**Speech of **all** spirits (Van, Rem, Rep, etc)' _Memories and dreams " ' _**Voice**

**WARNINGS 4 chapter: Stuff, stuff and more stuff! **

**Chapter 10: Living Memories**

The darkness was a very, very scary thing because no matter how far you ran and where you hid it would always find you. Because of this, Riku was afraid of the dark at a very young age.

That fear, no-matter how childish his father thought it was, never went away. Not even at age six when he had to go on a school camp.

The memory was as clear as day to Riku as he remembered it, trying to use it to distract him from the crushing black doom all around him.

"_Dad, I don't want to go." Young Riku had said in the morning on the day that he was going to leave for camp. He was sitting at the table and so was his father who in turn was reading a newspaper, scanning over the pages for an interesting article. _

_The man had silver hair just like Riku and it was a lot longer. He also had the same aquamarine eyes and pale complexion. _

"_Riku, we all have to do things that we don't want to. That's just a part of growing up." _

_The six year old sighed and rested his head on his arms that were now folded on the surface of the table. "But big brother doesn't always do what he is told. Sometimes he-" Riku was cut off when a hand went over his mouth._

"_Dad already knows that I go out to study with my friends." The person behind Riku said, still holding a hand over the boy's mouth. He was Riku's big brother and he had shorter hair than their father did. Over his eyes he wore black shades and bits of platinum hair hung over his face, hiding some of it from view._

_Their father lowered his newspaper and raised an eyebrow as if he suspected something. "Oh? It sounded like you were hiding something. What were you going to say Riku? What does your brother sometimes do?"_

_Riku bit the closest finger that he could, forcing his brother to let go of his mouth in surprise and pain. "Ow! You little brat!"_

_Riku snickered but he quickly put on an innocent look when he saw the glare that his father was giving him and his brother. Sephiroth was someone who didn't like being lied to, especially from his own sons. It had been hard to raise them after their mother had died but he wasn't too strict with them. Not all the time anyway._

"_Tell him and I'll make your life a living hell." The older brother hissed into Riku's ear._

_The six year old boy gulped, knowing that whenever he blabbed it never ended well for him._

"_Don't worry about it dad. Look, my bus is here." Riku said, directing his father's attention elsewhere. _

_Quickly, Riku got off of his chair and grabbed a small duffel bag that contained some clothing, lollies and everything else that he would need while on camp. _

_Sephiroth looked out the window and nodded, letting whatever his sons were hiding slide. Maybe he would question them again once Riku got back._

"_Ok, you're free to go. Remember to behave yourself on that camp and try not to beat up any of the other kids."_

_Riku smiled and nodded. "I'll try not to."_

_Before he could make it out of his door, his brother ruffled his hair and enveloped him in a hug. "Don't get into too much trouble, brat." He told him._

_Riku rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. You be careful too."_

'_Camp sucks.' Riku decided on the second day of it. He missed sleeping in his own bed because the ones in camp made him itchy and they smelt funny._

_He sat on a log outside of his cabin that he shared with some other kids. They were all annoying so that's why he was sitting outside, by himself. They were also playing 'murder in the dark' and since he was afraid of the dark, he refused to play. The game sounded stupid anyway and he didn't really see the point of it._

"_Riku, can I talk to you for a minute. It is very important."_

_Riku looked up from the dirt to see one of his teachers walking over to him, a sad expression on her face. "Ok…"_

_The teacher sat down on the log next to him, not meeting his eyes. She didn't want to tell him the bad news that she had received on the phone-call. It was too much for a six year old to take or even understand. _

"_You have to go home. Go get your things and I'll drive you home myself. There's been an accident."_

_Quickly as he could, Riku ran into his cabin and collected all of his things. He was worried about his father and brother. 'Accident' always meant something bad had happened. Something extremely bad. Was one of his family in hospital?_

_Once he gathered all of his things, he got into the car and his teacher drove him home without a word. Her brow was creased and her eyes looked like they would overflow with tears at any moment. _

_When the car pulled up in the drive-way, Riku spotted a few other cars outside the house. This worried him even more. Swiftly, he got out of the car without his things and entered the house. He soon spotted his father surrounded by a bunch of other people but he didn't look hurt. He looked sad though and as soon as he spotted his son he scooped him up in his arms and hugged him._

"_Dad, what happened? Where's big brother?" _

_Sephiroth took in a long, shaky breath and said, "Your brother… He is… Dead."_

_Right then and there, Riku's whole world shattered and came crashing down around him. He lost his innocence that day and became a different person._

_His brother, despite their constant fighting, was his role-model. To have him die so suddenly broke something inside Riku and he became much more quiet and bitter. It was also a real eye-opener to him and he realized just how easy it was to die. He never actually found out how his brother died though, no one wanted to tell him._

As soon as the memory faded, Riku realized something. He could not remember his brother's name at all. He could not recall what it was and that scared him even more than the darkness. How could he forget something like that? He also realized that compared to the darkness, forgetting something important like a name was a whole lot more scarier.

Suddenly, Riku felt the pressure from the darkness lift and it didn't seem as thick as before. The sickness that he felt slowly faded away and he could now stand, even if he did that a bit shakily at first.

**You no longer fear the darkness, is this correct?**

An unknown voice asked.

"No, I do still fear it but I am more afraid of forgetting things. Compared to that, the darkness is not as scary." Riku replied, hoping that the voice was not something evil.

**Then you have passed the test. Your element is the darkness which is a great feat within itself. **

Before Riku could question what the mysterious speaker meant, a weapon that looked like a cruel, red bat-wing appeared in one of his hands.

**This is a Keyblade. With it you have gained the power to fight off those that endanger your life and all those around you. **

And with those last words, Riku felt his body grow heavy and he collapsed.

In the real world, Riku woke up. He quickly sat up in his bed and looked around to find himself in the school's infirmary. In the bed next to him lay Sora who looked asleep and in the bed next to him lay Roxas, sleeping as well.

'_Was that all a dream?' _He thought, his brow creased. _'If it was then why did it feel so real?'_

His aquamarine eyes wandered over to where Sora was, wondering if he was going through the same thing as well.

Sora was still wondering how to get to Riku when the voice suddenly said, **Do not fret over him… He is fine. You should be more worried about yourself than him… Your element still isn't clear to me so you must pass one more test. If you do then you can leave…**

"Ok." The brunet said, his grip on his Keyblade tightening. He knew that he was going to fight one of those monsters. He could feel it.

As if to answer his suspicions, his own shadow started to grow and move. It grew and grew until it almost covered the whole platform. Soon, a gigantic black creature with hollow, yellow eyes spawned out from the shadow and it stood before Sora. The Heartless was the biggest one that he had ever seen and it looked like something straight out of a nightmare. The beast had two small wings growing out of its back and a gaping hole in its chest shaped like a heart. Things that looked like tendrils of darkness grew out of its head and they briefly reminded Sora of hair. The Heartless' arms were huge and its hands looked like they were good for crushing things. Him in particular.

**Beat him and you will awaken. Lose and you will be trapped here for ever.**

"Got it."

The Keyblade felt alien in Sora's hands but at least it didn't feel heavy. Actually, the weapon was rather light and it seemed easy enough to wield.

The brunet's sapphire eyes locked onto the monster's hands and he decided that taking them out first would be a good idea. That is if he even could do that. He wasn't sure what would happen if he actually hit the Heartless. He hoped that it would at least do some damage in some way.

Suddenly, spheres of energy shot out of the creature's chest and they came towards Sora. He quickly ran forwards but the spheres kept following him.

'_Maybe I can deflect them?' _He thought.

Sora tested his theory out by stopping and holding his blade in front of his body, shielding it from harm in a defensive stance.

The balls of energy exploded on impact with his Keyblade but they didn't really seem to harm him which made him feel relieved to no end.

Once all the spheres were gone he lowered his weapon. That was a big mistake.

As soon as he let his guard down, the Heartless grabbed him, wrapping its huge fingers around his body and arms so he wouldn't be able to attack.

'_I knew something like this was going to happen.' _

The Heartless held Sora up to its face and the beast's inhuman, yellow orbs bore into the boy's eyes. For a while it did nothing else but stare and Sora thought to himself, _'Am I going to die now?'_

More spheres of energy started to come down from above like rain and the brunet panicked. If he were to be hit by one then would he die instantly?

'You seem to have a knack for getting yourself into bad situations, Sora.' A voice whispered in the depths of Sora's mind. 'I won't always be here to get you out of them you know. One day you will grow up and be strong, maybe even more than me. I won't always be here to protect you when you get into trouble.'

'_Wait a second… Haven't I heard that somewhere before?' _The brunet thought, closing his eyes. He nodded. _'Yeah, I definitely have…'_

**Where have you heard it and when?**

"I'm not sure." Sora said out loud, his eyes still closed. "I just suddenly… Remembered."

**That's because it is a memory of your past, before you got adopted.**

Sora's eyes snapped open and he gasped in surprise mixed with shock. "What?!"

The voice in Sora's mind spoke up again, even if it sounded more distorted this time. 'But I want… remember that… we will always…'

We will always what? Sora wanted to yell. It wouldn't do any good though because memories were one of the only things that you couldn't control. There was no telling what you would remember or forget as time passed on. The only thing that you could be sure of is if you truly tried then there might be a chance that you could regain old memories. Keeping souvenirs helped with that and those people that didn't have any would soon grow up to regret it, just like Sora was now.

The Heartless exploded into a thick cloud of darkness that quickly surrounded Sora before he could react and he soon felt like he was being suffocated. He let go of his Keyblade and wrapped his fingers around his throat, trying desperately to make the choking feeling stop.

The darkness was swallowing him up. He had lost to the Heartless.

'But I want you to remember that we will always be family and that even if I do pass on, I'll still be with you even if you can't see me. So you better get stronger or else I'll find a way to come back and kick your ass. Goodbye brat and oh- you better not cry when I die or else! Ha, who am I kidding? You're miles away so obviously you can't hear me. I'm practically dying here! No pun intended either.'

'_That voice…' _Sora thought, barely holding onto his consciousness anymore. _'Sounds familiar… Did I used to… have a brother?'_

The choking suddenly stopped but Sora could still see nothing but darkness. He now felt like he was falling but a warm comforting feeling spread throughout his body. For once in his life, he felt safe in the hands of unknown forces.

**Memories… They cause us so much pain and grief… In the end though, they could be the only thing keeping everyone happy and hopeful for the future. Regain what you have lost, Sora and you will gain a power so great that you will have no need to be afraid anymore… Memories will be your key to the door and the prophecy will be fulfilled.**

A/C: And I'll end it here. I was supposed to add Roxas into this chapter as well but I haven't posted a chapter for ages.

I swear that I will not give up on this story! I just have too many tests and assignments at the moment.


	11. Fighting Back

**Insanity Mixed With Reality**

**SoRiku, AkuRoku, VanVen, slight SoRoku **

**Disclaimer: I don't own KH or Final Fantasy but if I did then Lightning and Hope would be in KH3!**

**A/N: The first half of this story still has a fair way to go before the second part, Reality Mixed With Insanity can begin. I still need to figure out where to end this half.**

**Thanks to everyone who has faved this story and to all the people who I have gotten reviews from no matter how short. Here is everyone who has reviewed (since I last checked):**

**TheAnnoyingVoice, bookgirl111, Lime Gap, DecidedFate13, X-blade025, Riilustra -Your Sweetest SIN, SoraAoNoHikari, Nexanda77 and Otaku Kid1996**

**If I have missed anyone then let me know! Your reviews and favs are much appreciated by me and all those that have made it this far. You guys are awesome!**

**And has anyone seen Angel Beats? If not then go watch it, I highly recommend it!**

"Speech" _'Thoughts' ___**'**Speech of **all** spirits (Van, Rem, Rep, etc)' _Memories and dreams " ' _**Voice**

**WARNINGS 4 chapter: **

**Chapter 11: Fighting Back**

The last thing Sora heard was the voice saying, **Memories… They cause us so much pain and grief… In the end though, they could be the only thing keeping everyone happy and hopeful for the future. Regain what you have lost, Sora and you will gain a power so great that you will have no need to be afraid anymore… Memories will be your key to the door and the prophecy will be fulfilled.**

After that, he awakened.

The brunet sat up in his bed and looked around, his sapphire eyes scanning the white room for any lurking dangers. When no Heartless suddenly popped up, he relaxed and realized that he was in the school's infirmary.

His eyes widened when he spotted Roxas in a bed not so far away from him and he had his eyes firmly closed.

"Sora, you're awake."

Sora turned his head to his left side and he grinned when he saw Riku sitting in a chair next to his bed, a tired look on his pale face.

"Yeah, did I sleep in or something?" Sora asked curiously.

"Something like that." Riku mumbled. "According to the school's nurse all three of us would not wake up." He said, louder. "Did you, by any chance, have a strange dream?"

Sora nodded and asked, "Yeah, you too huh?" He looked thoughtful for a moment before adding, "I dreamt that I was in a very dark place. A voice spoke to me and this gigantic black creature grabbed me. Also…" He trailed off, a bit embarrassed.

"Also what?" Riku asked, raising an eyebrow. He had a 'no-nonsense' look on his face.

"I heard… I heard you calling for help. Were you in some kind of trouble in your dream?"

Riku looked away and it was obvious that he didn't want to talk about the dream that he had. There was no way that he was going to let himself appear weak in front of someone, especially Sora.

"…"

Before the brunet could pry any further, the door opened and the school nurse came in. She looked very surprised to see two of her patients awake. They had only been brought in a few minutes ago. Aerith was glad that at least two of them seemed ok though. She hoped that the third boy would wake up soon as well.

"Morning Aerith!" Sora greeted, smiling. "Or is it the afternoon?"

The nurse smiled sweetly and came over to the two awake teens, a clipboard in her hands. "It's the afternoon. Nice to see you two up, Sora and Riku. Your friends were quite worried about you three. It seems that you guys were found still asleep in your rooms once classes finished and then you were brought here. It took a very long time to convince Axel to leave Roxas's side." She giggled at the memory. "And Kairi was frantic over you, Sora. Is she your…" The nice woman trailed off, letting the brunet figure out what she was hinting to.

"Girlfriend?" Aerith nodded. "No, she isn't. Kairi is just a friend… That is a girl."

Riku quickly interrupted them by saying, "Anyway, has classes finished yet?"

The brown-haired woman shook her head. "No but they will in a few minutes. You two can wait here if you like, I don't mind."

Sora nodded and replied, "Sure, thanks!"

Suddenly, the door opened and Axel burst in. He looked pretty frantic and worried. Quickly, he came over to Roxas and kneeled beside his bed.

"Did you get let out early?" Aerith asked, curious.

"Something like that. _Someone _started a fire in the science block." A male said with dark grey-hair in the style of a side-fringe said.

He came over and stood in front of the bed that Roxas was lying unconscious in. Briefly, he glanced at Riku and then his gaze rested on Sora.

"Uhh… Hi there!" The brunet said, not really sure what to say. "I'm Sora."

"Zexion." The mysterious teen replied.

Somehow, the atmosphere seemed to have become rather heavy all of the sudden. Even Aerith could feel it. "Ok, I need to go and post some reports. Will all of you be fine until I return?"

Sora quickly nodded, not wanting to be rude and Riku followed the same action.

As soon as the nurse exited the room and closed the door, Sora got up and came over to where Roxas lay. Riku, not wanting him to be so close to Zexion, did the same and positioned himself between Sora and Zexion.

"He's going to wake up, right?" Axel asked, his emerald green eyes looking to Zexion.

The grey-haired teen crossed his arms and stayed silent for a full minute, assessing Roxas's condition. Before he could give an answer though, Sora interrupted reassuringly "Of course he will Axel! Riku and I woke up. I bet he'll wake up any second now."

Zexion took down a few notes in his mind about the situation. _'So they are connected. I thought as much. Just what binds the three of them together? There must be more to it then friendship. A lot more.' _He thought. _'Hmm.. Maybe it has something to do with them having the same condition of hallucinating. That must be it but then what does this mean for Xemnas's plan? Does he know more about them then he is telling us?'_

"Thanks Sora, for trying to cheer me up. This isn't some fairy tale though." Axel replied grimly. He was being kind-of pessimistic, sure but he feared if he became hopeful then he would jinx Roxas and he would remain asleep for longer.

The brunet shook his head and went over to Roxas's other side, opposite to the one that Axel was on. He took the blonde's cool hand in both of his own warm ones, a hopeful look on his face. "Roxas, can you hear me? Of course you can!" He told him. "Can you please wake up soon? Everyone is worried about you, especially Axel. He's all gloomy and stuff."

The red-haired teen snorted at that last comment but a little bit of hope sparked within his heart, though he tried to keep it away. He wasn't sure how but Sora tended to make others feel better wherever he was.

"You heard him Roxy." Axel said, not taking the blonde's other hand in both of his own. He used his friend's nickname to try and get a reaction out of him. Roxas's composure remained the same though and there was no change whatsoever. "Come on Rox, you know that I'm useless without you."

Throughout all this, Riku and Zexion remained silent though they watched with some interest. Would talking to someone unconscious help them wake up? Could one be heard by the person dreaming?

Talking to Zack was a tad bit difficult because he kept boasting about how he was some great hero or something. Roxas and Ventus managed to learn a few things though. For one, the spirits that had been living in The World That Never Was had fled due to the infestation of Nobodies, creatures that seem to pop up randomly from time to time. In recent times the number of Nobodies had been kept to a manageable level because of another breed of monsters called the Heartless. For some reason, the Heartless had started disappearing until their numbers dropped to zero in almost no time. There didn't seem to be any reasonable explanation for it so Zack remained in the city to investigate and find the source of the problem. He also seemed to be one of the only spirits that was able to fight back against both the Nobodies and the Heartless.

"So have you found any clues on what is happening around here?" Roxas asked. He had the black hood of his black cloak drawn over his head because it started to rain. Ventus seemed to be enjoying it, he liked how it felt when raindrops hit his skin. It was rather soothing.

Zack shook his head sending some water-droplets flying. 'Sadly, no.'

'Uhh.. Roxas, Zack… Is that supposed to be there?' Ventus asked. He was pointing at to the space opposite Memory's Skyscraper.

"What the hell?" Roxas gasped out.

In the centre of the area was a gigantic, white creature that had a symbol on its face instead of eyes and a mouth.

'That,' Zack said, 'Is a Twilight Thorn. The guy shows up now and again, no matter how many times I defeat him.'

A metallic-blue, scarf like thing was around its neck and four tendrils were connected to it. The creature's arms were long while its legs were short with pointed feet.

"It's another Nobody, isn't it?" Roxas inquired, his fists clenched.

'You hit the nail right on the head.' Zack replied with a grin. He grabbed the handle of his sword and pulled it out of its hoister on his back. 'So, do you two want to help me defeat it?'

Both blondes nodded. There wasn't anything else they had to do at the moment and maybe by defeating the Twilight Thorn they could return to the real world and wake up from this dream.

"Alright, let's give it a shot."

Zack was the first one to attack the Nobody since he was the only one with a weapon. They planned that while he attacked, Roxas and Ventus distracted the Twilight Thorn. Ventus could do this by floating around and Roxas was very quick on his feet, he used to run track.

Zack jumped and swung his heavy blade at the creature, hoping that he could defeat it in one killing blow. He slashed it from head to abdomen and jumped away just in time to evade its blue tendrils. The monster looked unscathed as if Zack's attack hadn't impacted or damaged it at all.

"Guys, watch out! This thing's counter-attacks are nothing to sneeze at!" The raven-haired male yelled over the sound of the rain, now getting heavier.

It was going to be a lot harder to see now for him but at least Roxas had a hood to cover his face from the chilling rain.

A glowing ball of energy suddenly appeared around Roxas who instantly panicked. "What the hell is this? How do I get it off?!" He yelled to Zack, frantic.

Ventus, knowing that it was the Twilight Thorn who had done it, started floating around the creature's head to direct its attention from Roxas to him but it payed him no heed.

'That is very, very bad! Try to run or something!' Zack replied, thinking over what to do. Without a weapon, Roxas would be defenceless and in a world of pain in a few moments. There was nothing they could do though. Zack hoped that Roxas was good at enduring pain.

Suddenly, the ball of energy split into four parts. One gathered around each hand and foot, immobilizing him. He was pulled up into the air, trapped and helpless.

The creature swiftly moved over to the blonde and its face came close to his as if looking at him. It was hard to tell because the creature had no eyes that could be seen.

'Roxas!' Ventus yelled in warning as the Twilight Thorn pulled its arm back, preparing to punch Roxas with as much force as it could. 'Escape, quickly!'

"I'm trying!" The other blonde yelled back, struggling. There was no way to get out of the trap though, there was no escape!

**If there is no escape then what will you do? What **_**can**_** you do?**

The voice spoke, only reaching Roxas's ears.

"Fight." Roxas whispered.

As if this was the right answer, a key-like sword appeared in each of his hands. One was black with what looked like bat-wings for a hand-guard while the other was mostly white with angel winds.

**You are the darkest part of light, Sora is the lightest part of light and Riku is darkness. The three of you have a great battle ahead of you. Tell them all this. For now fight with the Keyblades Oblivion and Oathkeeper in your hands, then you will awaken.**

The fist of the Nobody came at Roxas now but just as it was about to hit him, he twisted the Keyblades around in his hands and blocked the blow, succeeding in pushing the monster back. His hands and feet still remained trapped in the orbs of energy though which irritated him to no end.

The Twilight Thorn regained its composure and it stretched its arms out before clamping its hands around Roxas. The orbs disappeared this time at least. The Twilight Thorn then proceeded to throw Roxas up high into the air sending him spinning, not really sure what to do in this situation.

Once the blonde came falling back down to the ground, the Nobody tried to grab him with one hand but Roxas was ready for this and he hit the monster's hand with both of his Keyblades and easily landed on the ground on his own two feet, his momentum having slowed once he attacked the Nobody.

The Twilight Thorn fell over at this point, maybe from shock or from the power of the Keyblades being so in sync, sending water flying from the puddle that it fell in. The Nobody wasn't done there though, instead it seemed to sliver away like a snake and disappear behind a few buildings.

Zack and Ventus came over then, surprised by Roxas and his new weapons but wary.

'Good job but it will be back in a moment, be on your guard.' Zack warned.

Just as he predicted, the Nobody appeared at the top of Memory's Skyscraper, its arms stretched up towards the sky. The next thing that happened shocked everyone. A gigantic ball of bluish energy appeared above the creature.

'That's not good!' Zack exclaimed, raising his sword across his body in a defensive position. 'We can't run from that! Get behind me and I'll block it!'

"By yourself, yeah right!" Roxas replied with a roll of his eyes. "Ventus, get behind us."

'But-'

"Just do it! We'll be fine!"

'Ok.'

Both Zack and Roxas got ready to block with their weapons, a determined look on both of their faces. They were going to beat this thing here and now!

Ventus floated behind them, trying to keep from thinking about the worst things that could happen.

'Get ready, brace yourself and don't lose your footing.' Zack advised.

"Got it."

The Twilight Thorn then proceeded to throw the gigantic ball of energy at them with as much force as it could.

Everything seemed to go into slow-motion as the sphere came close to Roxas and Zack, time slowed down. For Roxas anyway.

The blonde came forward and thought to himself, _'Wait for it… wait for it…' _A few seconds passed. _'Now!'_

Roxas threw both Keyblades at the bluish sphere making it explode on impact with the blades sending light burst from it. The force blew Roxas back though since he was closest and he was sent flying into a building close by. His Keyblades cluttering on the ground not so far from him. He quickly got up and ignored the pain that was flaring up all around his body, especially his back. He ran over to his weapons and picked them up.

'Good job Roxas, you knocked him off the building!' Zack yelled.

The blonde looked around and saw the Twilight Thorn lying on the pavement where Zack was attacking it without mercy. 'Now's your chance, finish it off!'

Ventus came to the blonde's side and they both nodded at the same time before Roxas proceeded to run at the downed creature and slash in an X shape at its head.

This blow seemed to finish it because light and darkness gathered all around both Roxas and the Twilight Thorn, consuming them both, Ventus too.

'Goodbye!' They faintly heard Zack say. 'I hope we meet again someday soon. Maybe by then you two will be heroes.'

Roxas felt himself floating. He didn't know when it had started but he was now aware of it. He opened his sapphire eyes only to see nothing but a grey colour.

"Can you please wake up soon? Everyone is worried about you, especially Axel. He's all gloomy and stuff."

"You heard him Roxy. Come on Rox, you know that I'm useless without you."

'_Sora… Axel…' _Roxas thought groggily, able to identify their voices.

**Tell them what I have told you and get ready for the fight ahead. You three Wayfinders are the key…**

"What key? Key to what?" Roxas asked but there was no answer, only a great beam of light.

As quickly as the light appeared it slowly vanished to reveal colour. Red, brown and silver. Hair?

Roxas blinked repeatedly a few times and he gasped to find Axel, Sora, Riku and someone who was sure was called Zexion looking at him.

"What are you all staring at?" He asked, indifferent.

"You're awake!"

Then Sora and Axel proceeded to hug him at the same time, shocking the blonde.

"Can't… breathe guys."

He would tell Sora and Riku what the voice told him later. For now he just wanted to spend time with his friends without having to worry about anything.

**KH 1.5 Remix (I think that's the right name) will be coming out where I live soon! That's good because my inspiration for KH will go up once I buy the game and play it. **


	12. Planning Insanity

**Insanity Mixed With Reality**

**SoRiku, AkuRoku, VanVen, slight SoRoku **

**Disclaimer: I disclaim!**

**WARNINGS 4 chapter: Vanitas and Remnant swear ;P but at least they get a chapter!**

**A/N: **

**Reviewers so far (since I last checked):**

**TheAnnoyingVoice, bookgirl111, Lime Gap, DecidedFate13, X-blade025, Riilustra -Your Sweetest SIN, SoraAoNoHikari, Nexanda77 and Otaku Kid1996**

***gives a Keyblade to all***

**And thank you reader for making it this far! There is more to come!**

"Speech" _'Thoughts' ___**'**Speech of **all** spirits (Van, Rem, Rep, etc)' _Memories and dreams " ' _**Voice**

**Chapter 12: Planning Insanity**

'Hey, where the hell am I?!' Vanitas yelled, his voice echoing.

All he could see was blank whiteness and it made him slightly anxious. He wanted to go back, he wanted to go back to the darkness. It was safe there, behind the mirrors where darkness never ended. It was too bright here, much too bright. If he was here then where was Remnant? Shouldn't he be here too?

Laughter filled the air but the source was not coming from one place, it was coming from all sides! The raven-haired spirit spun around this way and that but he could not spot anything that stood out from the whiteness of the area.

The laughter was not evil, it was joyful. Maybe that was why Vanitas feared it, he could not stand joy of any kind. Not even Remnant knew why.

'Stop laughing!' Vanitas yelled, his eyes flashing with pure rage. He clenched his fists tight when the laughter grew louder and louder. 'It hurts!' He yelled out, now clutching his chest with his left hand. He felt pain in his chest but he wasn't sure why, he couldn't comprehend it at all.

The laughter ceased at least and all became quiet once again.

**Why does it hurt?**

A voice spoke, neither male nor female. It sounded godlike in a way but Vanitas didn't believe in Gods or Goddesses.

'I don't.. I don't remember!' The spirit shouted, irritated. 'Now show yourself you fucking coward!'

**And why don't you remember?**

'Because I'm dead you idiot, most ghosts can't remember their past or how they died.'

A gunshot sounded throughout the area and Vanitas instantly crouched to the ground out of pure instinct. Even he was surprised that he had done it so fast.

'Are you trying to scare me?!' Vanitas demanded the voice, wide-eyed. He wasn't sure what the voice was capable of so it was best if he kept on his guard.

**I'm helping you remember who you are, what you can do.**

A boy appeared in front of Vanitas, who was still crouching, and his face was so bright that Vanitas could not make out who he was. The boy wore a green shirt and cream-coloured shorts.

'Vanitas, let's go play together!' The boy said, his voice muffled but audible.

'Who are you?' Vanitas demanded, getting up. 'How do you know me? Why are you so familiar?'

That joyful laughter came again from the boy and his face became less bright but not enough to make out what he truly looked like.

'Come on Vanitas, you promised that we would play together!'

The boy then grew in size, aging in front of Vanitas eyes. That's what he thought was happening to him anyway. They were now the same height, though Vanitas was slightly taller, and the boy, now a teen, wore a cream-coloured jacket with a green scarf and black jeans. That's when Vanitas noticed that his own clothing had changed too. He wore a black jacket, red scarf and black jeans as well.

'You promised that you would stop hurting people but yet you still continue to do it!' The mysterious teen exclaimed, his voice now clear. 'I know that you only wanted to protect me but that's no excuse for killing Lea and Isa! They have brothers you know, two little brothers!'

The light around the person's face faded to reveal teary, sapphire eyes and golden hair.

'I… didn't know. It doesn't make a difference though! They were our enemies, they worked for Xehanort and they were going to kill you if the old man ordered it!' Vanitas's voice said though Vanitas didn't move his lips at all. Was this a memory playing out right before his eyes?

'I could have defended myself! I didn't need your help! I'm not as helpless as you and Repliku think. Hell, even he believes in me more than you!'

'Don't bring him into this! He was supposed to keep you from coming after me yet he failed and you got hurt!'

'Your ego is just too big for you to admit that I saved you from getting shot!'

This banter of words was really starting to irritate Vanitas, even if it was a memory to help him remember a piece of his past.

The blonde turned his back to Vanitas and said, 'And I can't believe that I trusted you enough to think that you would stop killing people. What a big lie that was.'

'Ventus, wait.'

Sniffing was heard from the blonde and it was obvious that he was crying. 'I need some time… away from y-you.'

'Ven, don't go!'

The golden-haired male then proceeded to run away and he disappeared just as Vanitas was going to go after him.

**Do you remember him? Is he familiar?**

The raven-haired teen shook his head. 'I don't really know he is but his name… It has a ring to it.'

'_Ventus… Just who are you? Were you important to me?' _Vanitas thought.

Suddenly, the area started to grow darker and darker, comforting the spirit to no end. He would find out who this person is and nothing was going to stop him from doing so.

'Hey Van! Wake up, snap out of it!'

'Huh?'

Vanitas's golden eyes snapped open to find himself sitting on the ground with Remnant crouching in front of him, waving a hand in front of his face.

'Oh man, you were totally out of it!' Rem declared, his green eyes half-lidded. 'You're not fading away or anything? Passing on?'

The raven-haired ghost rolled his eyes and huffed. 'Yeah right. Now move out the fucking way before I kick you. You're blocking the mirrors.'

Rem quickly heeded his warning and moved to sit beside Vanitas, not too close just in case he snapped at him.

'Anything happen while I was…' Was what? 'Dreaming.' Yeah, that sounded like the word for it.

'Uhh…' Rem ran a hand through his white hair, thinking over what he had found interesting while viewing the mirrors. 'Sora, Riku and Roxas all seemed to be unconscious for a while and the one called Axel seems to be in love with Roxas or something. Riku seems wary of a guy named Zexion and that's about it. Boring as usual. You could always send one of those creatures to scare the crap out of Sora if you want. Unversed was what you named them, right?'

There was a nod of affirmation. 'Yeah.' Something was troubling Vanitas though. Why had he been the one to have a dream while Remnant didn't? They normally experienced the same things together.

'Van, something wrong?'

Maybe Sora was losing his link with them. They hadn't had a change in a long time to do with what they were capable of doing. After a while, the spirit that was in the presence of a Wayfinder would start becoming more human, less limited in where they could go or even gain a power of some sort. Vanitas and Remnant had yet to gain something from Sora.

'No nothing is wrong.' The raven-haired boy replied. His frown formed into a smirk and he added, 'I guess we have to change our plans. Let's break Sora.'

If they could make him lose his sanity then maybe, just maybe they would get something from him. Hopefully unlimited power and freedom from behind the mirrors. Freedom was something that both Vanitas and Remnant sought after the most. Being confined by the mirrors was like one big cage with no way out. They longed to be set free. That would mean leaving the darkness, where it was safe. Would they be able to do that once the time came to escape?

~***~Page Break~***~

Unknown to Vanitas, there was something that Remnant was hiding from him. He had almost all of the memories from his past and he knew how he died. He had yet to recover the memories of his family though. Rem had not mentioned this to Vanitas yet because he felt guilty that Van still could not remember a thing of his past.

'_I was shot.' _Remnant thought. _'I died on a Friday. Became a spirit on a Saturday. I met Vanitas on a Sunday and then Sora on a Monday.' _The white-haired ghost smiled and shook his head. _'Heh, what a wreak I was before I met Vanitas. I was so scared wandering around aimlessly on and beyond in the world behind the mirrors, bumping into other trapped souls like myself.'_

The spirit sat down and watched as Vanitas moved from mirror to mirror, obviously planning how to make Sora lose his sanity. They had never planned to do that just in case they made him too unstable to be a Wayfinder like the last vessel that they had. Poor guy had not lasted long.

'_I was shot by Ienzo and I died of blood loss. I saw him get shot too but who? Hmm… I might regain that memory soon, hopefully when Vanitas's plan succeeds. What had I been doing before getting shot though? I'm sure that I was stealing something but what was it? An artifact of some kind? No, that doesn't seem right.' _Remnant thought. _'Had I been doing something illegal?'_

'Hey Rem, are you even listening?'

Vanitas's voice snapped the white-haired spirit out of his thoughts and he shook his head, clearing away all of his thoughts of his past. Vanitas stood in front of where he was sitting, tapping his foot impatiently with his arms crossed. 'What the hell were you thinking about to look so troubled? It must have been some deep shit.'

Rem rolled his eyes and stood up before putting his hands in the pockets of his jeans. At the moment his attire consisted of black jeans and a lime-green shirt with no sleeves while Vanitas wore a red hoodie with black track-pants.

Neither of them could actually get hot or cold but they liked to change their clothes every once and a while.

'I was just… thinking things over.' Remnant replied. 'You know, why we're in here and not out there.'

Vanitas nodded but did not comment on the subject. He actually had an inkling, or more like a theory, as to why they were in here. His theory was that both of them had committed some kind of sin to anger _something _and that's why they were here and not in the 'outside' world. This theory also meant that depending on how someone died effected their condition in the afterlife as a ghost. If all of this was true then Vanitas wondered just what the hell he did when he was alive to deserve being sent here, in the world beyond mirrors.

According to all the other spirits he had met in the time before he met Sora, Vanitas had found out that all spirits are supposed to be sent to 'The World That Never Was' before going to the real world. Just what had disrupted this process? Had outside forces caused it?

'Whatever.' The dark-haired ghost said out loud before directing his next few words to Rem. 'Let's start turning Sora insane. Maybe then, we will be set free from this prison.'

In the inside, Vanitas feared going into the real world. It wasn't safe, only the darkness was truly safe.

**A/N: I know that my updates are getting worse but I keep forgetting where I'm trying to go with this story. Don't worry though, I am not abandoning it! **

**Anyway, check out Keyblade Warriors! Just like this story it will also have one/two week updates and it is actually set after KH2! I'll try harder in the future to write more in each chapter! **


	13. Rising Complications

**Insanity Mixed With Reality**

**SoRiku, AkuRoku, VanVen, slight SoRoku **

**Disclaimer: Ok, let's all travel to the game world and steal a Keyblade. Then we could try and get the power of Kingdom Hearts, then we will own it!**

**WARNINGS 4 chapter: Swearing **

**A/N: **

**Reviewers so far (since I last checked):**

**TheAnnoyingVoice, bookgirl111, Lime Gap, DecidedFate13, X-blade025, Riilustra -Your Sweetest SIN, SoraAoNoHikari, Nexanda77, Otaku Kid1996 and ShadowArtist13 You ALL rule! **

**Reviews are loved! Chapter 13! Reminds me of Organization XIII. Also, I had heaps of fun writing this chapter then the past ones!**

"Speech" _'Thoughts' _**'**Speech of **all** spirits (Van, Rem, Rep, etc)' _Memories and dreams " ' _**Voice**

**Chapter 13: Rising Complications **

The day, more like the _morning, _after Sora. Riku and Roxas got let out of the infirmary, they had to begin attending classes. That was something that they definitely were not looking forward to.

"Gah, what a horrible looking uniform." Roxas complained while trying to fix his tie.

It turned out that they had to wear uniforms, though they had been able to wear casual clothes on opening day and the second day.

The uniform was mostly black for the pants and shirts (depending on which one the student wanted to wear) were black with red for the shirt sleeves (if the shirt had any) and for the collar. All students also had to wear ties and the girls' uniforms were mostly white with blue instead of red. They too had to wear ties though not all of them had to wear pants, they had the choice of wearing a skirt and stockings too. Everyone had to wear the same ghastly black shoes though.

"Oh stop complaining." Riku told the blonde, straightening his own tie. "The uniform is not _that _bad."

While Roxas opted for wearing a shirt-sleeved shirt, Riku wore a long-sleeved one and Sora wore the same as Roxas, his crown pendant hidden under his uniform just in case he got in trouble for it. He did not want something so precious to be taken away for it was a gift from his only known living relative, and the only person he remembered before he got adopted, his aunt Aqua.

She lived far away and she worked hard so she hardly ever visited, though she liked to at least once every few months.

"Come on Sora, we have to go to class soon!" Roxas exclaimed in the direction of the bathroom, ignoring Riku's reply.

"Ok, I'm just brushing my teeth!" Was the brunet's muffled reply.

Sora had the door closed and he was doing what he said. He was making sure to brush his teeth perfectly before spitting and rinsing. Roxas and Riku had already done that daily task, though Roxas had taken twice as long. He was a perfectionist, especially when it came to keeping things nice and tidy plus germ free.

Sora looked in the mirror out of habit but nothing appeared. No smirking Vanitas, no grinning Remnant. He looked around the bathroom. No little monsters called the Heartless in any shadow or any of the rare blue creatures that would pop up.

Sighing, he looked back at the mirror only to find that his own eyes had turned golden instead of their usual sapphire.

Sora staggered backwards, shocked by his own mirror reflection. What had happened to his eyes? Why were his eyes like that?

"Oh, that's right! That weird voice that we all heard, it told me to tell all of you something!" Came Roxas's voice from the bedroom, snapping Sora out of his fear.

The brunet looked to the door for a moment then fearfully back at the mirror. A gasp escaped his lips before his expression turned into one of relief. His reflection was back to normal. There was no golden eyes, he was fine. Obviously it had been a trick of the light or something. Yes, or _something._

Sora slowly moved and entered the bedroom where Roxas was tapping his foot impatiently, obviously wanting to tell them all something important.

"Well, now that Sora has finally done brushing his teeth, tell us." Riku said, crossing his arms. "And it better not be something that we already know."

All three of them had discussed their dreams in depth soon after leaving the infirmary though they had left out a few details since Axel, Zexion and the three girls that they had befriended were with them.

Aquamarine eyes trailed over to Sora for a few seconds for he looked a bit… shaky or off. Riku frowned but he was sure that it was nothing.

"Well," Roxas began, grabbing the other twos attention since they seemed slightly too deep in though. "It told me that I am the darkest of light." He then pointed to Sora. "And you are the lightest part of light while you, Riku are darkness. Also, I was told that we have some kind of battle ahead of us." The blonde shrugged. "Weird, right? We are also the 'key' to something but I don't have a clue what. I'm guessing that our weapons from our dreams have something to do with it."

"Keyblades." Riku confirmed. "Though from what we all discussed on the details of our Keyblades, the designs were very different. I am very interested about the fact that Roxas got two while Sora and I got one."

Sora nodded, wondering about that too. Out of all the details about their Keyblades that they had discussed, his seemed to be of the simplest design. His Keyblade didn't seem as dazzling as what Riku and Roxas had described their Keyblades to be like. Maybe he just sucked at describing? Then again, the Keyblade seemed to suit it. Its simple design was very him, in a way. He saw himself as a simple person, a happy person at that when two certain ghosts were not around taunting him or any monsters for that matter.

Unknown to the trio, Vanitas and Remnant along with the spirits with Riku, Repliku and Ansem along with Ventus, Roxas's spirit, had also been listening in on _everything. _Though none of them had let their presence be known.

"My Keyblades have names. Oblivion and Oathkeeper I'm pretty sure." Roxas added, finding that the names suited his weapons quite well. Every great weapon needed a name, in his opinion anyway.

"Kingdom Key." Sora suddenly said, covering his mouth once he did.

"Soul Eater." Riku murmured, following the same action as Sora.

The names of their Keyblades had been on the tips of their tongues though they had not been told by the voice as Roxas had.

Before they could discuss it any further, a bell sounded throughout the school which alerted all of the students that classes were going to start in a few minutes.

"Let's go." Roxas commanded before he rushed out of the room, not wasting any time.

After a nod from Riku, Sora and he rushed after the blonde. They had missed the first few days of school so being late on their real first day was not going to be a great way to start their first week of school. All three of them had their first class together, at least. Sadly it was science and apparently Axel was with them in that class too which Roxas had said was not good since the red-head seemed to enjoy burning things and mixing chemicals to create mini-explosions.

The trio arrived to class only to find hardly any other students in the room. Well, at least they were early rather than late.

Just as Roxas had said, Axel was in the room and he was at the back of the class with some other guy with blue hair and an X scar on his face. Roxas briefly remembered his name being Saix and they had met before, about a year ago perhaps.

"Roxy~" The red-haired male said in a sign-song voice. "Come sit with Saix and I!"

The blonde shook his head, about to use Sora and Riku as an excuse but they just looked at each-other, smirked and then pushed Roxas in the direction of where Axel sat.

"Go on, Axel is your friend too and your best friend so you should sit together!" Sora explained, an innocent smile on his face.

"Yeah, Sora and I will be fine." Riku added though there seemed to be a knowing look in his eyes.

Inwardly, Roxas was pulling his hair out and yelling curses. It's not that he hated Axel, he just found him so irritating sometimes and he despised the group, more like _gang _that he seemed to be mixed in at this school.

"Fine but stop calling me Roxy! It pisses me off!"

Roxas sat down beside Axel, briefly looking at Saix who sat on Axel's other side before he looked at the desk in front of them where Sora and Riku had decided to sit. They were chatting and they seemed pretty happy with each-other's company. _'Am I the third wheel?' _The blonde thought depressing before Ventus replied, without appearing, 'No. If you had chosen to sit with them then everything would be the same.'

'_That's not what I meant exactly. I meant-'_

'If they were more than friends then would you get left out? Maybe but they're not so don't worry.'

At that moment, Roxas decided that being selfish was not the way to go about this. What if he were to help Sora and Riku? Give them a little push or a nudge in the right direction? He liked Sora, who could not like him? He liked Riku, maybe less so than Sora but still. So helping them become more than friends was in Roxas's best interest since he liked them both and wanted them to be happy.

'_I'm not as oblivious to things such as love as they are. They themselves might not be able to see it but I can. They like each-other but are too oblivious to even realize it. Telling them won't work, I need to help them out as discreetly as I can.'_

"Roxas?"

Axel's voice snapped the blonde out of his thoughts and he looked up from where he had been looking at the desk to Axel who was looking back at him with concerned, emerald-green eyes.

"Something wrong?"

"No. Why do you care?"

Maybe it was also Roxas who was oblivious too.

"Why wouldn't I care? You're my best buddy after-all."

"Pfft, sure. What about all your _new _buddies huh? I'm sure that you care more about them then-"

"Roxas!" Sora interrupted, now looking at the blonde. Riku was doing the same and it was obvious that the brunet had interrupted Roxas's heated rant on purpose. They were trying to help Axel out since Roxas seemed to have a lot of hate for him due to his new _friends _or whatever they were called.

"What?" The blonde snapped, his azure eyes angry. They softened after he saw Sora's warm smile though.

"Riku and I were wondering what your favourite colour is!" It was an obvious lie that was made up on the spot. Roxas had to give him points for not faltering though.

"Uhh… " Did black _and _white count? He was fond of both of the colours yet he could not pick a favourite one. They went nicely together. "Blue." Roxas replied to the question, thinking of the first colour he saw which was in Sora's eyes. He would seem too gloomy if he said black and boring is he said white. Blue was nice too though.

Axel glared at the brunet, his glare blazing hot and venomous. Sure, he had liked Sora when he first met him but he seemed to be interfering with his relationship with Roxas too much. If he got in the way then Axel would have no choice but to take him down whether it was through force, blackmail or other methods. Roxas was _his _friend and _his _only! No-one was allowed to interfere with what Axel wanted or else they would be in a world of hurt!

Sora didn't notice the glare, neither did Roxas but Riku did and he shot back his very own glare at Axel which was as cold as ice. He didn't like the way that Axel was eyeing Sora and he hoped that he wouldn't be a problem later on.

"Axel." Saix said in warning, a frown on his face. "Don't start anything."

The red-haired male sighed and stopped glaring at Sora, calming down for the moment. Before anyone could say and do anything else, a loud, authoritative voice demanded, "Silence class! If you don't all shut the hell up right now then I'm going to send you to the principal himself!"

It turned out that all the other students had arrived while Roxas and the others had been preoccupied and their teacher too. Their teacher was a man with long, dirty-blonde hair that seemed a tad of an olive colour. He wore a lab coat that had 'IV' stitched into the collar and his eyes were a forest-green colour which were narrowed in irritation.

Everyone silenced at the threat and a few of the students who had attended the school before shivered. Xehanort was creepy, there was no denying it.

"Good." The science teacher said, a pleased smile on his face that made a few students' skin crawl. He got out some chalk from his desk and started writing on a blackboard, the chalk squeaking from time to time in a very loud manner. "Now as most of you know," He turned and looked at Sora, Riku and Roxas before continuing on with whatever he was writing. "I am Vexen, your science teacher for this year and I'll have you all know that bad-behaviour is NOT tolerated."

Riku was going to whisper a comment along the lines of, "Seriously? A black board? What century are we in?" But he decided against it and remained silent. If he were to get in trouble then he didn't want to drag Sora down with him too.

"Now, in the draws built into your desks there are electronic tablets that you will be using for this class. If you break them then I will find a suitable punishment to make you pay for it, understood class?"

A heavy silence filled the room since no-one was sure if they had to reply.

"Am I understood, class?" Vexen said more sternly, his voice almost like a screech. He turned around to face his students, an icy glare somehow directed at all of them.

"Understood…" Was everyone's stiff reply.

Vexen looked pleased and once again, that same creepy smile was on his face. "Good, now get out your tablets and get to work!"

Sighs of relief were let out all over the room before everyone did as they were told, more like _ordered_, to do and slowly, chatter started.

"I am stumped." Riku told Sora as he dug around through the draws, trying to find both of their tablets.

The brunet raised an eyebrow out of curiosity. "Why? What for?" He asked.

"This class has a blackboard yet it also has tablets. This school is just plain weird!" Riku replied just as he found two tablets and pulled them out. "Ahh! Here we go!" He handed one to Sora while he settled his own down on the table.

"Yeah, I guess that is a little weird."

As soon as both Sora and Riku pressed what they assumed was the 'on' button, an image in the shape of a hand came up onto the screen. "Huh? What the heck is this for?"

Around the class, many other students voiced their confusion.

"What the hell?"

"Did I break it already?"

"Piece of shit!"

"Why does it want a high-five?"

"Lame."

"Haha, LOL."

"Dumbass."

Vexen pinched the bridge of his nose and interrupted, "Put your own hand on the image of a hand! How stupid are all of you? It's supposed to scan your hand so that it can identify its user!"

"Oh!"

"Ohhhh!"

"Still lame."

"Craptastic."

Riku looked suspicious but he let out a sigh of defeat and slowly put his hand on the outline, Sora watching him. There was a brief tingling sensation on the palm of Riku's hand but it faded almost as soon as it came and the whole screen lit up green before an unlocking noise was heard and a bunch of different programs came up.

"Cool." Sora commented before he did it himself. Soon enough, the screen also lit up green though the tingling sensation that Sora had stayed for about two minutes before it faded. "That felt weird."

"You're telling me." Riku replied before they both opened up a program to write things down.

"What if it hurts?" Axel complained to Roxas and Saix whom both rolled their eyes before they did the scanning process.

"Coward. It just tingles for a bit." The blonde told him before he started writing down the information written on the blackboard.

"You're losing your touch, Axel. Where did that backbone of yours go?" Saix teased before he too started recording things down.

The red-haired male narrowed his eyes before he placed his hand on the screen. Unlike what Roxas said about a tingling sensation, he didn't even feel a thing and it went green quite quickly.

'_Taking notes is stupid. It's not like I need to actually learn any of this shit anyway considering that my future is with the Organization.' _He thought with a scowl but he decided to do the work anyway, just in case Vexen snapped at him later or made his ears bleed with his stupid rants. _'Stupid old geezer. Just because he is a higher rank than me…'_

The class continued on for forty minutes and taking down notes is what the whole lesson was spent doing before the bell for the next class rang.

Almost everyone let out a sigh of relief as they put their tablets back in the draw that they had gotten them out of before everyone stood up from their chairs and waited patiently behind their desks.

"Dismissed." Vexen said.

Once the magic word was said, all the students rushed out of the class as soon as they could, not wanting to spend another minute near the creepy, science teacher.

Roxas quickly rushed away from Axel and Saix and started walking with Sora and Riku, feeling more comfortable in their company compared to the tense one he had with Axel.

"So what do you guys have next?" Roxas asked.

"PE with Xigbar." Sora replied.

"Me too!" Roxas exclaimed.

Riku sighed before he said, "Maths with Vexen." How unlucky to have the same horrid teacher twice in a row and for a subject like maths too! "I'll meet you two back at our dorm for break, alright?"

"Yep!"

"Sure."

**A/N: I'm going to start asking general questions and you can reply to them in your reviews if you want since I love to read feedback and what other people think! **

**Neko's question: Who is your fav KH character and why? (in the games, not my story).**

**Mine is Sora, isn't it obvious? Riku is second and it's a toss-up between Roxas, Ventus and Vanitas for third followed by Axel for fourth. **

**Oh! And you can ask me questions too if you want! **


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